Systems and methods for dynamically enabling and disabling a biometric device

ABSTRACT

Systems and methods are described to address deficiencies in conventional biometric devices by dynamically enabling and disabling a biometric device based on the content the user is viewing. The media guidance application may utilize a device enablement rule, which has content criteria. If the content criteria is satisfied, the media guidance application may enable or disable a biometric device in accordance with the device enablement rule.

BACKGROUND

Biometric devices are common technology, used to monitor variouscharacteristics of a user such as the user's physical activity or theuser's organic function and vitals. However, the abundance of biometricdevices and, as an extension, the abundance of measurements frombiometric devices can be overwhelming for a user. In many cases, thedevice consumes a lot of resources to collect data that the user doesnot need, or will never access. Since biometric devices can be wearabledevices, constant data acquisition can lead to quicker battery drainsand overuse of the processor. This large amount of information may alsobe excessive and can breach the user's privacy (e.g., the biometricdevice may collect data when the user does not wish for data to becollected).

SUMMARY

Accordingly, systems and methods are described to address deficienciesin conventional biometric devices by dynamically enabling and disablinga biometric device based on the content the user is viewing. Supposethat a user is using a biometric device (e.g., Fitbit band) to trackphysical activity and vitals. For example, the Fitbit band may monitorthe user's heart rate, sleeping patterns, steps taken, calories, etc.Rather than continuously collecting data, a media guidance applicationmay be used to disable and enable data collection of the Fitbit bandbased on the content that the user is viewing. For example, the mediaguidance application may detect that the user is viewing a horror movie(e.g., “The Conjuring”), which features a scene presenting a jump scare.The scene may be associated with an enablement rule that causes theFitbit band to begin tracking the user's heart rate. Once the scenestarts, the Fitbit may start collecting heart rate measurements. Basedon the user's reaction, the media guidance application may also providea content recommendation. For example, if the user's heart rate did notchange, it is possible that the user was not scared by the scene.Therefore, the media guidance application may recommend a scarier movie.

The media guidance application may determine that a user is accessingcontent on user equipment (e.g., set-top box, laptop, smartphone).Suppose that the user is viewing the horror movie “The Conjuring.” Itshould be noted that the content being accessed by the user may be anymedia including, but not limited to, videos, audio, graphics and/orgames.

The media guidance application may retrieve a device enablement ruleassociated with the content. The media guidance application may retrievemetadata associated with the content being accessed. The metadata mayinclude device enablement rules associated with the content. Forexample, each scene of the movie may be associated with a deviceenablement rule created by the content provider. Accordingly, themetadata may include a list of scenes that details the name of a scene,the time the scene starts in the movie, information about the content inthe scene, a device enablement rule, and the rule's compatibility withvarious biometric devices. Suppose that the media guidance applicationdetermines that “The Conjuring” has seventy scenes. Furthermore, basedon the metadata of the movie, the media guidance application determinesthat scene two has a device enablement rule associated with the Fitbitband and various heart rate monitors. The device enablement rule mayprompt the biometric device to monitor the user's heart rate throughoutthe duration of playback of scene two. In addition, the deviceenablement rule may contain information about an expected biometricresponse (e.g., an exciting scene in a movie may be expected to cause anaccelerated heart rate).

The media guidance application may determine whether the contentcurrently being accessed satisfies the device enablement rule. Aspreviously mentioned, the metadata of the content may includeinformation about the device enablement rule, and the rule'scompatibility with various biometric devices. More specifically thecompatibility information may include a list of biometric devices thatare associated with the device enablement rule. It should be noted thatthe biometric device may be any device or smart technology that canmonitor a characteristic of a user (e.g., facial expressions, movement,sounds, stress levels, daily habits, vitals, body temperature, etc.) Forexample, the biometric device may be an imaging device (e.g., MicrosoftKinect) which may track the user's expressions, pupil dilation, eyemovements, etc. Similarly, the biometric device may be a smart speaker(e.g., Google Home, Amazon Echo, etc.) that may monitor sounds made bythe user, such as talking, laughing, crying, etc. In addition, the mediaguidance application may determine that the user has begun viewing scenetwo of “The Conjuring.” Furthermore, the media guidance application maydetermine that the user is using a biometric device (e.g., Fitbit band)that is in the list of biometric devices. In response, the mediaguidance application may determine that the content currently beingaccessed satisfies the device enablement rule.

In response to determining that the content currently being accessedsatisfies the device enablement rule, the media guidance application maytemporarily activate a biometric device associated with the user whilethe content currently being accessed continues to satisfy the deviceenablement rule. For example, the media guidance application may keepthe Fitbit's heart rate monitoring feature active while scene two isbeing generated for display to the user. Suppose that the deviceenablement rule is associated with a smart speaker (e.g., Google Home)to collect voice samples of the user during scene two (e.g., when a jumpscare appears). During playback of scene two, the media guidanceapplication may enable audio collection of the Google Home. Accordingly,if the user screams or reacts audibly, the Google Home may record theaudio. In another scenario, suppose that the device enablement rule isassociated with a motion tracker for monitoring the movement of theuser. The motion tracker may incorporate a camera, such as in asmartphone, a Microsoft Kinect, a webcam, etc. In response to theplayback of scene two, the media guidance application may enable themotion tracker to monitor various features such as the user's movements,facial expressions, interaction with the user's surroundings, etc. Forexample, if the user is accessing “The Conjuring” on his/her smartphone,the camera on the smartphone may be enabled to monitor the eye movementof the user. This information can indicate whether the user looked awayfrom the screen in response to the jump scare or closed his/her eyes. Insome embodiments, the media guidance application may label the time whenthe device enablement rule was satisfied as the start time and wait foran end time, which is the time when the device enablement rule will stopbeing satisfied (e.g., at the end of scene two). Once the end time isreached, the media guidance application may deactivate the biometricdevice. Deactivating the device may simply involve stopping the devicefrom collecting data until further instruction from the user or mediaguidance application. In some cases, deactivating may involve sendingthe biometric device into sleep mode, a lower power mode, or completelyshutting the power down. It should be noted that the end time may nottake place within the time period that the user accesses the content(e.g., media asset). For example, the device enablement rule may enablea biometric device for a long period of time. Suppose that the user islistening to a podcast about healthy eating. The podcast may beassociated with a device enablement rule that enables the user'ssmartphone or smart speaker to track the user's eating habits over thecourse of two weeks, starting from when the user stops listening to thepodcast. Accordingly, the user's smartphone may prompt the user to enterhis/her dietary information on a daily/weekly basis; the user's smartspeaker may request this information verbally.

The media guidance application of the biometric device may measure abiometric response of the user to the content currently being accessedwhile the biometric device is activated. Suppose that the Fitbitacquires a set of heart rate measurements every two minutes and thatscene two is ten minutes in duration. While the Fitbit's heart ratemonitoring feature is activated for the ten-minute duration of scenetwo, the Fitbit may collect six sets of heart rate measurements. In theexample given of a smart speaker, a Google Home may begin collecting anaudio sample for the duration of scene two.

The media guidance application may generate a content recommendationbased on the measured biometric response. Suppose that scene two is ahorror scene with multiple jump scares. The biometric response may bethe set of heart rate measurements acquired by the Fitbit. The deviceenablement rule may indicate that the expected biometric response shouldbe in a heart rate range of 90-100 beats per minute. The media guidanceapplication may refer to a biometrics database that includes informationabout different levels of biometric responses. The biometrics databasemay have a heart rate table classifying various heart rate levels. Forexample, 60-80 beats per minute may be classified as a normal heartrate, whereas 80-100 beats per minute may be classified as anaccelerated heart rate, in the heart rate table. The media guidanceapplication may determine that the average heart rate from the six setsof measurements is 72 beats per minute. Based on the heart rate table,the media guidance application may therefore determine that the user'sheart rate is in the normal heart rate class and is not in the expected“accelerated” class, as indicated in the expected biometric response. Asa result, the media guidance application may search for content that canaccelerate the user's heart rate. For example, the user may not find thescenes in “The Conjuring” scary and was thus unaffected by scene two.The media guidance application may determine that the genre of theuser's accessed content “The Conjuring” is horror. Accordingly, themedia guidance application may determine that the user should berecommended content from the horror genre that is considered scarier. Insome embodiments, the media guidance application may providesupplemental content while the user is accessing content, in order toalter the user's biometric response. For example, the media guidanceapplication may activate an external component such as a Google Homedevice owned by the user, to generate sounds associated with horror. Themedia guidance application may also overlay a scary character jumpingout at the user in virtual reality or augmented reality. While thesupplemental content is being provided, the media guidance applicationmay monitor for changes in the user's biometric response (e.g.,increased heart rate).

In some aspects, the media guidance application may determine that auser is accessing content on user equipment. In some embodiments, thecontent includes at least one of a linear media asset (e.g., televisionbroadcast sports event), an on-demand media asset (e.g., a movie), andsocial chatter on a social platform associated with the user (e.g., aforum/discussion). Suppose that the user is viewing the horror movie“It: Chapter One,” an on-demand media asset, on his/her set-top box.

The media guidance application may retrieve a device enablement ruleassociated with the content. The media guidance application may retrievemetadata associated with the content being accessed. The metadata mayinclude device enablement rules associated with the content. Forexample, the media guidance application may determine a deviceenablement rule that prompts biometric devices to collect heart ratemeasurements from the user.

In some embodiments, the media guidance application may generate a newdevice enablement rule. For example, suppose that the content providerhas not added a device enablement rule to the metadata of the content.The media guidance application may identify popular content, characters,topics, people, places, etc. by referring to social media (e.g.,trending on Twitter). The media guidance application may also identifyitems in the user profile that the user prefers (e.g., content,characters, actors, artists, places, etc.). These preferences may beexplicitly stated (e.g., the user indicates that his/her favorite actoris Tom Hanks), or implicitly (e.g., the user's viewing history indicatesthat the user has viewed several movies featuring Tom Hanks). Inresponse, the media guidance application may generate a deviceenablement rule with content criteria that corresponds to popularityand/or the user profile.

In some embodiments, the media guidance application may allow the userto create device enablement rules. For example, the media guidanceapplication may allow the user to access a list of device enablementrules in the user profile and allow the user to manually add deviceenablement rules. The user may enter the device enablement rule and themedia guidance application may parse the user-generated deviceenablement rule to ensure that the user's device enablement rule isvalid. For example, if a user creates the device enablement rule formeasuring heart rate and associates it with a pedometer which cannotmeasure heart rate, the media guidance application may prompt the userthat the user-generated device enablement rule is not valid.

The media guidance application may determine content criteria specifiedby the device enablement rule. A device enablement rule may beprogrammed with “if-else” logic. For example, the device enablement rulemay be structured as “IF [Criteria 1] and/or [Criteria 2] . . . and/or[Criteria N], THEN [RESPONSE A1] and/or [RESPONSE A2] . . . and/or[RESPONSE AN]; ELSE [RESPONSE B1] and/or [RESPONSE B1] . . . and/or[RESPONSE BN].” In this structure, if a combination of the criteria, asestablished by the content provider or user, is met, the media guidanceapplication will execute the respective response combination from the Aset (e.g., A1, A2, etc.). If the combination of the criteria is not met,the media guidance application will execute the respective responsecombination from the B set (e.g., B1, B2, etc.). Suppose that thecontent provider established the device enablement rule states “IFPennywise the Clown appears in a scene, THEN enable the biometric deviceand prompt the biometric device to take a heart rate measurement; ELSEdisable the biometric device.” Suppose that the biometric device is theFitbit. The content criteria in this device enablement rule is theappearance of Pennywise the Clown, a character in “It: Chapter One,” ina scene of the movie.

The media guidance application may retrieve metadata associated with thecontent being accessed on the user equipment that matches the contentcriteria. The media guidance application may refer to the metadataassociated with the movie to determine the characters that appear in themovie at various playback positions (e.g., Pennywise the Clown). Themedia guidance application may also use computer vision to identifyobjects on the screen and classify whether the object is Pennywise theClown or not, using a reference image of Pennywise the Clown (e.g.,retrieved from the Internet). The media guidance application may referto the subtitles of the movie to determine when Pennywise the Clown ismentioned in the movie. The media guidance application may also analyzethe audio of the movie and utilize natural language processing toidentify the voice of Pennywise the Clown, using a reference voice modelof Pennywise the Clown (e.g., retrieved from the Internet). Using anycombination of these processes, the media guidance application mayidentify the appearance of Pennywise the Clown and determine that thecontent criteria is met.

In some embodiments, the device enablement rule may specify the playbackpositions in which Pennywise the Clown appears in the movie. Forexample, the device enablement rule may state “IF playback is atposition 0:12:57 or 0:50:12 or 1:24:23, THEN enable the biometric deviceand prompt the biometric device to take a heart rate measurement; ELSEdisable the biometric device.” The content criteria in this case pointsto specific playback positions in the movie, such as 12 minutes and 57seconds from the start (e.g., 0:12:57). Once playback to the userreaches this point, the content criteria may be satisfied.

The media guidance application may compare the retrieved metadata to acondition specified by the device enablement rule, to determine whetherthe content being accessed on the user equipment satisfies the deviceenablement rule. For example, if the user is on playback position0:12:57, the media guidance application may determine that the contentcriteria of the device enablement rule is satisfied. In contrast, if theuser is on playback position 0:05:11, the media guidance application maydetermine that the content criteria of the device enablement rule is notsatisfied.

The media guidance application may identify a biometric device of theuser associated with the device enablement rule. As previouslymentioned, the device enablement rule may be retrieved from the metadataof the content. The metadata may also include information about thebiometric devices that the user possesses. For example, the mediaguidance application may determine, from the metadata, that thebiometric device associated with the device enablement rule (e.g., tomeasure heart rate) and possessed by the user include a Samsung Gear, aFitbit band, and a portable heart rate monitor.

In some embodiments, the media guidance application may determinewhether the biometric device is being used by the user. For example, themedia guidance application may communicate with the user's Fitbit bandto determine whether the user is wearing the band. Biometric devicesusually have a built-in sensor to determine whether the user is incontact with the biometric device. If the user is not near the Fitbitband (e.g., user is viewing the movie in the living room and thebiometric device is in the user's bedroom), the media guidanceapplication may determine that the device does not satisfy the deviceenablement rule because it cannot physically measure the user's heartrate if the content criteria is met.

The media guidance application may temporarily activate the identifiedbiometric device while the content being accessed continues to satisfythe device enablement rule. Returning to the overarching example, themedia guidance application may identify that the user is wearing his/herFitbit band. In addition, the media guidance application may determinethat Pennywise the Clown has appeared in a scene being viewed by theuser. In response, the media guidance application may determine that thecontent criteria of the device enablement rule have been satisfied, andmay enable the biometric device. The user's Fitbit may remain enableduntil Pennywise the Clown exits the scene.

The media guidance application may measure a biometric response of theuser to the content being accessed while the biometric device isactivated. For example, while Pennywise the Clown is in the scene beingviewed by the user, the media guidance application may ensure that theuser's Fitbit band is active, and is collecting the user's heart rate.In some embodiments, the media guidance application may store thisbiometric response (e.g., heart rate values organized with time stamps).The media guidance application may determine that during the duration inwhich the Fitbit was enabled, the average heart rate of the user was 111beats per minute.

The media guidance application may then generate a contentrecommendation based on the measured biometric response. Suppose that ina certain scene, Pennywise the Clown appears. Metadata associated withthe device enablement rule may indicate that the expected biometricresponse should be in a heart rate range of 90-100 beats per minute. Themedia guidance application may refer to a biometrics database thatincludes information about different levels of biometric responses. Aspreviously mentioned, the biometrics database may have a heart ratetable classifying various heart rate levels. For example, 80-100 beatsper minute may be classified as an accelerated heart rate and 100-120may be classified as very accelerated, in the heart rate table. Based onthe heart rate table, the media guidance application may thereforedetermine that the user's heart rate is in the “very accelerated” heartrate class and is not in the expected “accelerated” class, as indicatedin the expected biometric response.

In some embodiments, if the user's biometric response increases beyond athreshold (e.g., 140 beats per minute), the media guidance applicationmay stop playback of the content being accessed by the user as a safetymeasure. In some embodiments, the media guidance application may searchfor content that can slow down the user's heart rate. The media guidanceapplication may determine that the genre of the user's accessed content“It: Chapter One” is horror. Accordingly, the media guidance applicationmay determine that the user should be recommended content from thehorror genre that is considered less scary. The media guidanceapplication may refer to the Internet to search for horror movies withdevice enablement rules associated with a “slightly-accelerated heartrate” expected biometric response. Once the media guidance applicationhas identified a list of content associated with a “slightly acceleratedheart rate,” the media guidance application may search for content inthe list of content that is associated with the horror genre in theirrespective metadata. Suppose that the media guidance applicationidentifies the movie “The Conjuring” which features scenes with deviceenablement rules associated with maximum “slightly accelerated” heartrates. The media guidance application may generate for display, therecommendation, after the viewer has stopped watching “It: Chapter One,”recommending “The Conjuring.” In some embodiments, the media guidanceapplication may generate for display, the recommendation, on a seconddisplay screen (e.g., the user's smartphone).

In some embodiments, the media guidance application may remove portionsfrom the content being accessed by the user, in order to alter theuser's biometric response. For example, the media guidance applicationmay determine that the user's biometric response is a very high heartrate in response to Pennywise the Clown's appearance. Due to this, themedia guidance application may block out Pennywise the Clown usingcomputer vision (e.g., segmentation and classification) or replacePennywise the Clown with a less scary image. The media guidanceapplication may also skip scenes that will feature Pennywise the Clown.The media guidance application may then monitor whether the user's heartrate decreases in response to the removal of portions.

In some embodiments, the media guidance application may search a socialnetwork based on an identifier of the content to identify a plurality ofcommunications associated with the content. The identifier of thecontent may be any representation of the content such as the content'sname (e.g., “It: Chapter Name”), common name (e.g., “It”), genre (e.g.,horror), creator (e.g., artist, production house, director, etc.),characters, cast, artwork, and/or sound. Accordingly, the media guidanceapplication may search for “Pennywise the Clown” on a social networksuch as Facebook, in order to identify a plurality of communicationsassociated with “Pennywise the Clown.” The plurality of communicationsmay include posts, comments, messages, acknowledgments (e.g., likes,reactions, etc.), videos, photos, audio clips, etc.

The media guidance application may then identify a number of thecommunications that were received by the social network within athreshold period of time of a progress position of the content. Thethreshold period of time may be a window of time before and/or after theprogress position of the content. The progress position represents adiscrete point in the content and may include, but is not limited to,the playback position of a video/audio or a slide number in a slideshowof images and text. Suppose that the progress point is 12 min 50 secondsinto the movie “It: Chapter One” and the threshold period of time is tenminutes. The media guidance application may thus only considercommunications that were received by the social network, Facebook,between 7 min 50 seconds and 17 min 50 seconds. While accessing “It:Chapter One,” a first user (e.g., the user's friend) may post a commenton a social network. The media guidance application on the friend'sdevice may determine that the friend is accessing “It: Chapter One” andadd the friend's progress point as metadata to the friend'scommunication. When the media guidance application on the user's deviceidentifies communications, the media guidance application may retrievethe metadata of the communication to determine whether thecommunication's progress point is within the threshold period of time.In the case where the user is accessing content being broadcasted, themedia guidance application may determine the transmission time of thecontent and consider the progress point with respect to the transmissiontime. For example, if “It: Chapter One” is broadcasted (e.g.,transmitted to a plurality of users simultaneously) on HBO on Nov. 1,2017 at 8:00 pm, and the progress point is 12 min 50 seconds into themovie, the media guidance application may consider commercial times andcontent version in order to determine that the progress point time is8:15 pm. Thus, the threshold period of time may be any ten-minute windowaround 8:15 pm (e.g., 8:12 pm and 8:22 pm). As a result, the mediaguidance application may consider communications that were received by asocial network during that time.

The media guidance application may then determine whether the number ofthe communications exceeds a threshold value. For example, the mediaguidance application may count the number of communications that werereceived within a threshold period of time by various social networks(e.g., Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Reddit, etc.) and are associatedwith the identifier of the content. Suppose that the media guidanceapplication identifies 10,000 communications. In some embodiments, theuser may also limit the communications to those posted by the user'sfriends. In this case, the media guidance application may identify 50communications. The media guidance application may retrieve a thresholdvalue from the user profile. The threshold value may represent a minimumnumber of communications needed to classify a portion of the content aspopular (e.g., a famous scene in the movie). Suppose that the thresholdvalue is 20, a number less than the number of communications associatedwith the user's friends. As a result, the media guidance application maydetect that a portion of the content corresponding to the progressposition of the content is popular. In determining that the portion ispopular, the media guidance application may generate a device enablementrule associated with the portion if one does not already exist.

In order to establish when the portion starts and when the portion ends(e.g., to determine a playback window in which the device enablementrule is satisfied), the media guidance application may store a starttime and an end time of the portion of the content. The start time maybe the first time of the window of time formed by the threshold periodof time around the progress point. The end time may the last time of thewindow of time formed by the threshold period of time around theprogress point. For example, if the progress point is 12 min 50 seconds,and the threshold period of time is ten minutes, the start time may be 7min 50 seconds and the end time may be 17 min 50 seconds. In terms oftransmission time (e.g., content began transmission at 8:00 pm on HBO),the start time may be 8:08 pm and the end time may be 8:18 pm.

The media guidance application may then detect that a currentprogression point of the content being accessed corresponds to the starttime. For example, the media guidance application may determine that thecurrent progression point of the content (e.g., 12 minutes 50 seconds)corresponds to the start time and is within the threshold period oftime. The media guidance application may temporarily activate thebiometric device while the current progression point is between thestart time and the end time. For example, the media guidance applicationmay communicate with the user's Fitbit band to enable the Fitbit's heartrate measuring feature at the start time. Once the current progressionpoint has reached the end time, the media guidance application maycommunicate with the user's Fitbit band to disable the Fitbit's heartrate measuring feature.

In some embodiments, the media guidance application may retrieve fromthe device enablement rule, a set of biometric devices specified in thedevice enablement rule. For example, the media guidance application mayretrieve metadata associated with the device enablement rule. Themetadata may include a set of biometric devices that the deviceenablement rule specifies. For example, the set of biometric devicesassociated with the device enablement rule that measures heart rate mayinclude Fitbit bands, Samsung Gear, and a portable heart rate monitor.

The media guidance application may then retrieve a list of biometricdevices associated with the user. As previously mentioned, the mediaguidance application may refer to the user profile to identify biometricdevices that the user has access to, or is associated with the user. Forexample, the media guidance application may determine that the user isassociated with a Fitbit band, a Samsung Gear, and a pedometer. Themedia guidance application may then compare the list of biometricdevices associated with the user with the set of biometric devicesspecified in the device enablement rule. For example, the media guidanceapplication may determine that the device enablement rule is associatedwith the Fitbit band and the Samsung Gear, two devices that the user isassociated with. However, the media guidance application may alsodetermine that the user is not associated with a portable heart ratemonitor, and the device enablement rule is not compatible with thepedometer.

The media guidance application may select as the identified biometricdevice, one or more of the biometric devices in the list that matchesone or more of the biometric devices in the set of biometric devices.For example, the media guidance application may select the Fitbit bandand the Samsung Gear because they appear in both the list and the set ofbiometric devices. In the case where the user does not have access toany biometric device associated with the device enablement rule, themedia guidance application may determine the most popular biometricdevice from the set of biometric devices. For example, the mediaguidance application may refer to the biometrics database, and determinethat a majority of the users use the Fitbit band in order to measureheart rate. In response, the media guidance application may retrieve alist of vendors that sell the Fitbit band, and recommend purchasing theFitbit band to the user.

In some embodiments, the media guidance application may determine a typeof content being accessed by the user equipment. The type of content maybe the medium in which the content is presented. For example, thecontent may be a video, an audio clip, an e-book, an image, a game, etc.The media guidance application may select as the device enablement rule,a given device enablement rule of a plurality of device enablement rulesthat corresponds to the type of content being accessed. For example, theuser may be able to access the content “It: Chapter One” in varioustypes. These types include a video of the movie, an audiobook, an e-bookof the original story written by Stephen King, or a comic featuringvarious graphics. Depending on the type of content, the deviceenablement rules may vary. For example, for a video, the deviceenablement rule may activate a biometric device in response todetermining that Pennywise the Clown has appeared in a scene. For theaudiobook, a device enablement rule may activate whenever a voice actorportraying Pennywise the Clown speaks.

In some embodiments, the media guidance application may determine thatthe content being accessed satisfies the device enablement rule, occursat a first progression point in the content. If a user is accessing “It:Chapter One” in the form of an audiobook, the media guidance applicationmay retrieve a device enablement rule that states “IF the voice actor ofPennywise the Clown speaks, THEN enable the biometric device and measurethe user's heart rate; ELSE disable the biometric device.” The mediaguidance application may use voice recognition method (e.g., naturallanguage processing) to identify that the voice actor of Pennywise theClown begins talking 12 minutes and 50 seconds from the start of thecontent. The media guidance application may also refer to metadataassociated with the audiobook that indicates the times at which variousvoice actors speak. If the user's current playback position is the firstprogression point, the media guidance application may check whether thedevice enablement rule is satisfied. Suppose that the user's firstprogression point is 12 minutes 50 seconds. The media guidanceapplication may determine that the device enablement rule is satisfied.The media guidance application may monitor additional metadata of thecontent accessed by the user equipment corresponding to a secondprogression point later than the first progression point. For example,the media guidance application may determine that the use has reached asecond progression point (e.g., 13 minutes 35 seconds). At that point,the media guidance application may monitor the metadata associated withthe audiobook to determine the voice actors that are speaking during thesecond progression point. Suppose that the voice actor for Pennywise theClown stops speaking at the second progression point.

The media guidance application may then compare the additional metadatato the condition specified by the device enablement rule to determinewhether the content being accessed on the user equipment at the secondprogression point satisfies the device enablement rule. If the deviceenablement rule measures heart rate when the voice actor of Pennywisethe Clown speaks, the media guidance application may determine that thevoice actor stops speaking at the second progression point. As a result,the device enablement rule is not satisfied and the media guidanceapplication may deactivate the identified biometric device. For example,if the Fitbit band of the user begins taking heart rate measurementsfrom the first progression point, the media guidance application maycommunicate with the Fitbit band in order to deactivate the Fitbit band.As a result, the Fitbit band will stop taking heart rate measurements.

In response to determining that the device enablement rule is satisfied,the media guidance application may monitor additional metadata of thecontent accessed by the user equipment corresponding to a thirdprogression point later than the second progression point. For example,the media guidance application may wait an additional period of timeuntil the user reaches the third progression point (e.g., 15 minutes 2seconds). Once the user has reached the third progression point, themedia guidance application may access metadata associated with the thirdprogression point, such as the name(s) of the voice actors speaking atthe third progression point. This serves the purpose of determining apoint at which the device enablement rule is no longer satisfied.

In some embodiments, the media guidance application may retrieve anaverage biometric response of a plurality of users to the content beingaccessed at the first progression point. For example, the media guidanceapplication may refer to a remote server that stores biometric responsesof various users. The remote server may include a biometrics databasethat is organized based on various measurements and biometric devices.For example, the biometrics database may include heart rate measurementsof various users. The heart rate measurements may be associated withcontent, progression points, and other details (e.g., biometrics) aboutusers such as age and weight. The media guidance application mayretrieve the heart rate measurements for a plurality of users listed inthe biometrics database that accessed “It: Chapter One.” Morespecifically, the media guidance application may determine whether thebiometric response is associated with the first progression point. Ifso, the media guidance application may determine the average biometricresponse. For example, if the media guidance application retrieves heartrate measurements for 10,000 users associated with “It: Chapter One”(e.g., audiobook) at the first progression point (e.g., 12 minutes 50seconds), the media guidance application may determine that the averageheart rate is 82 beats per minute.

The media guidance application may compare the biometric response of theuser to the average biometric response. Suppose that the biometricresponse of the user at the first progression point was 80 beats perminute. The media guidance application may rely on a response thresholdto compare the user's biometrics response with the average biometricsresponse. The response threshold represents a range within which thebiometric response may correspond. For example, the response thresholdfor heart rate measurements may be 5 beats per minute. Therefore, if thebiometric response of the user is plus or minus 5 beats per minutewithin range of the average biometric response (e.g., between 77 beatsper minute and 87 beats per minute), the media guidance application maydetermine that the biometric response corresponds to the averagebiometric response. In some cases, the response threshold is determinedby a percentage difference. For example, the response threshold may be2%. Therefore, the media guidance application may determine that therange of the average heart rate is 2% plus or minus the heart rate(e.g., 2% of 82 is 1.64 and thus the range is between 82-1.64 beats perminute and 82+1.64 beats per minute).

The media guidance application may then identify a group of users whoexperienced an average biometric response to the content being accessedat the first progression point that corresponds to the biometricresponse of the user. For example, the media guidance application maydetermine that of the plurality of 10,000 users identified, 2,000 usersexperienced a biometric response that also corresponds to the user'sbiometric response. More specifically, 2,000 users have a biometricresponse that is within the response threshold of the user. If theuser's biometric response is 80 beats per minute and the responsethreshold is 2 beats per minute, the media guidance application mayidentify users with an average biometric response between 78 and 82beats per minute.

The media guidance application may select as the content recommendation,a media asset that corresponds to a group profile associated with thegroup of users (e.g., the users with an average biometric responsebetween 78 and 82 beats per minute). For example, the media guidanceapplication may determine that out of the 10,000 users identified, 2,000users have biometric responses corresponding to the user's biometricresponse. The media guidance application may classify the 2,000 usersunder a group profile. For example, the media guidance application mayaccess the user profiles of the respective users to determinecommonalities of interest (e.g., favorite movies, most accessed mediaasset, etc.). Based on this information, the media guidance applicationmay recommend a media asset, which a majority of the identified usershave accessed, to the user.

In some embodiments, the media guidance application may identify adisorder related to a lack of a typical biometric response to contentthat matches the content criteria, wherein the media asset relates tothe disorder. Suppose that the heart rate of the user, in response toaccessing content at the first progression point, rises to 140 beats perminute. In comparison to the average heart rate of the users identifiedin (e.g., 82 beats per minute), the media guidance application maydetermine that the user's heart rate is abnormally high. In response,the media guidance application may identify a heart disorder associatedwith very high heart rates. The media guidance application may refer tothe biometrics database to identify disorders associated with the user'sabnormal biometric response. The biometrics database may include namesof disorders, definitions, and associated values of biometric responsesto the disorders, expected biometric responses, and content attributes.

The media guidance application may alert another user associated withthe user about the disorder. The media guidance application may refer tothe user profile to identify emergency contacts selected by the user.For example, the user may indicate his/her parents as emergencycontacts. In response to determining an abnormal biometric response, themedia guidance application may send a message to the parents of the userindicating a potential risk for the identified disorder. The message mayinclude, but is not limited to, a text message, an email, a social mediamessage, or a computer voice-generated phone call.

The media guidance application may also monitor treatment progress ofthe disorder of the user by detecting a different biometric response ofthe user to additional content that matches the criteria at a subsequenttime. For example, the media guidance application may increase thefrequency of heart rate measurements by creating device enablement rulesthat measure heart rate. The media guidance application may recommendcontent similar to the content the user accessed to compare thedifference in biometric responses. For example, the media guidanceapplication may identify that “The Conjuring” is a horror movie withsimilar average biometric responses as “It: Chapter One,” based on thebiometrics database. If the user accesses “The Conjuring,” the mediaguidance application may compare the biometric response of user toscenes in “The Conjuring” to scenes in “It: Chapter One.” If the user'sheart rate is less in the former, the media guidance application maydetermine that the user's disorder has lessened in severity. If theuser's heart rate is in the normal range again, the media guidanceapplication may determine that the user's heart rate is no longerabnormal.

It should be noted that the systems, methods, apparatuses, and/oraspects described above may be applied to, or used in accordance with,other systems, methods, apparatuses, and/or aspects described in thisdisclosure.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above and other objects and advantages of the disclosure will beapparent upon consideration of the following detailed description, takenin conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which like referencecharacters refer to like parts throughout, and in which:

FIGS. 1A and 1B show illustrative examples of scenarios for dynamicallyenabling and disabling a biometric device, in accordance with someembodiments of the disclosure;

FIGS. 2 and 3 show illustrative examples of display screens generated bya media guidance application in accordance with some embodiments of thedisclosure;

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of an illustrative user equipment device inaccordance with some embodiments of the disclosure;

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of an illustrative media system in accordancewith some embodiments of the disclosure;

FIG. 6 is a flowchart of an illustrative process for dynamicallyenabling and disabling a biometric device, in accordance with someembodiments of the disclosure;

FIG. 7 is a flowchart of a detailed illustrative process for dynamicallyenabling and disabling a biometric device, in accordance with someembodiments of the disclosure;

FIG. 8 is a flowchart of a detailed illustrative process for determiningwhether aportion of the content corresponding to a progress position ofthe content is popular, in accordance with some embodiments of thedisclosure;

FIG. 9 is a flowchart of a detailed illustrative process for comparing alist of biometric devices associated with the user with a set ofbiometric devices specified in the device enablement rule, in accordancewith some embodiments of the disclosure;

FIG. 10 is a flowchart of a detailed illustrative process fordetermining a type of content being accessed by the user equipment, inaccordance with some embodiments of the disclosure;

FIG. 11 is a flowchart of a detailed illustrative process fordeactivating the identified biometric device, in accordance with someembodiments of the disclosure;

FIG. 12 is a flowchart of a detailed illustrative process for selectinga media asset, as the content recommendation, that corresponds to agroup profile associated with a group of users, in accordance with someembodiments of the disclosure; and

FIG. 13 is a flowchart of a detailed illustrative process foridentifying a disorder related to a lack of a typical biometric responseto content that matches the content criteria, in accordance with someembodiments of the disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Systems and methods are described to address deficiencies inconventional biometric devices by dynamically enabling and disabling abiometric device based on the content the user is viewing. Suppose thata user is using a biometric device (e.g., Fitbit band) to track physicalactivity and vitals. For example, the Fitbit band may monitor the user'sheart rate, sleeping patterns, steps taken, calories, etc. Rather thancontinuously collecting data, a media guidance application may be usedto disable and enable data collection of the Fitbit band based on thecontent that the user is viewing. For example, the media guidanceapplication may detect that the user is viewing a horror movie (e.g.,“The Conjuring”), which features a scene presenting a jump scare. Thescene may be associated with an enablement rule that causes the Fitbitband to begin tracking the user's heart rate. Once the scene starts, theFitbit may start collecting heart rate measurements. Based on the user'sreaction, the media guidance application may also provide a contentrecommendation. For example, if the user's heart rate did not change, itis possible that the user was not scared by the scene. Therefore, themedia guidance application may recommend a scarier movie.

The amount of content available to users in any given content deliverysystem can be substantial. Consequently, many users desire a form ofmedia guidance through an interface that allows users to efficientlynavigate content selections and easily identify content that they maydesire. An application that provides such guidance is referred to hereinas an interactive media guidance application or, sometimes, a mediaguidance application or a guidance application.

Interactive media guidance applications may take various forms dependingon the content for which they provide guidance. One typical type ofmedia guidance application is an interactive television program guide.Interactive television program guides (sometimes referred to aselectronic program guides) are well-known guidance applications that,among other things, allow users to navigate among and locate many typesof content or media assets. Interactive media guidance applications maygenerate graphical user interface screens that enable a user to navigateamong, locate and select content. As referred to herein, the terms“media asset” and “content” should be understood to mean anelectronically consumable user asset, such as television programming, aswell as pay-per-view programs, on-demand programs (as in video-on-demand(VOD) systems), Internet content (e.g., streaming content, downloadablecontent, Webcasts, etc.), video clips, audio, content information,pictures, rotating images, documents, playlists, websites, articles,books, electronic books, blogs, chat sessions, social media,applications, games, and/or any other media or multimedia and/orcombination of the same. Guidance applications also allow users tonavigate among and locate content. As referred to herein, the term“multimedia” should be understood to mean content that utilizes at leasttwo different content forms described above, for example, text, audio,images, video, or interactivity content forms. Content may be recorded,played, displayed or accessed by user equipment devices, but can also bepart of a live performance.

The media guidance application and/or any instructions for performingany of the embodiments discussed herein may be encoded on computerreadable media. Computer readable media includes any media capable ofstoring data. The computer readable media may be transitory, including,but not limited to, propagating electrical or electromagnetic signals,or may be non-transitory including, but not limited to, volatile andnon-volatile computer memory or storage devices such as a hard disk,floppy disk, USB drive, DVD, CD, media cards, register memory, processorcaches, Random Access Memory (“RAM”), etc.

With the advent of the Internet, mobile computing, and high-speedwireless networks, users are accessing media on user equipment deviceson which they traditionally did not. As referred to herein, the phrase“user equipment device,” “user equipment,” “user device,” “electronicdevice,” “electronic equipment,” “media equipment device,” or “mediadevice” should be understood to mean any device for accessing thecontent described above, such as a television, a Smart TV, a set-topbox, an integrated receiver decoder (IRD) for handling satellitetelevision, a digital storage device, a digital media receiver (DMR), adigital media adapter (DMA), a streaming media device, a DVD player, aDVD recorder, a connected DVD, a local media server, a BLU-RAY player, aBLU-RAY recorder, a personal computer (PC), a laptop computer, a tabletcomputer, a WebTV box, a personal computer television (PC/TV), a PCmedia server, a PC media center, a hand-held computer, a stationarytelephone, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a mobile telephone, aportable video player, a portable music player, a portable gamingmachine, a smart phone, or any other television equipment, computingequipment, or wireless device, and/or combination of the same. In someembodiments, the user equipment device may have a front facing screenand a rear facing screen, multiple front screens, or multiple angledscreens. In some embodiments, the user equipment device may have a frontfacing camera and/or a rear facing camera. On these user equipmentdevices, users may be able to navigate among and locate the same contentavailable through a television. Consequently, media guidance may beavailable on these devices, as well. The guidance provided may be forcontent available only through a television, for content available onlythrough one or more of other types of user equipment devices, or forcontent available both through a television and one or more of the othertypes of user equipment devices. The media guidance applications may beprovided as on-line applications (i.e., provided on a web-site), or asstand-alone applications or clients on user equipment devices. Variousdevices and platforms that may implement media guidance applications aredescribed in more detail below.

One of the functions of the media guidance application is to providemedia guidance data to users. As referred to herein, the phrase “mediaguidance data” or “guidance data” should be understood to mean any datarelated to content or data used in operating the guidance application.For example, the guidance data may include program information, guidanceapplication settings, user preferences, user profile information, medialistings, media-related information (e.g., broadcast times, broadcastchannels, titles, descriptions, ratings information (e.g., parentalcontrol ratings, critic's ratings, etc.), genre or category information,actor information, logo data for broadcasters' or providers' logos,etc.), media format (e.g., standard definition, high definition, 3D,etc.), on-demand information, blogs, websites, and any other type ofguidance data that is helpful for a user to navigate among and locatedesired content selections.

FIGS. 1A and 1B show illustrative examples of scenarios 100 and 106 fordynamically enabling and disabling a biometric device, in accordancewith some embodiments of the disclosure. Suppose that the user isviewing the horror movie “Creature from the Black Lagoon,” an on-demandmedia asset on display 102 (FIG. 1A). The media guidance application mayretrieve a device enablement rule associated with the content. The mediaguidance application may retrieve metadata associated with the contentbeing accessed. The metadata may include device enablement rulesassociated with the content. For example, the media guidance applicationmay determine a device enablement rule that prompts biometric devices tocollect heart rate measurements from the user.

The media guidance application may determine content criteria specifiedby the device enablement rule. A device enablement rule may beprogrammed with “if-else” logic. For example, the device enablement rulemay be structured as “IF [Criteria 1] and/or [Criteria 2] . . . and/or[Criteria N], THEN [RESPONSE A1] and/or [RESPONSE A2] . . . and/or[RESPONSE AN]; ELSE [RESPONSE B1] and/or [RESPONSE B1] . . . and/or[RESPONSE BN].” In this structure, if a combination of the criteria, asestablished by the content provider or user, is met, the media guidanceapplication will execute the respective response combination from the Aset (e.g., A1, A2, etc.). If the combination of the criteria is not met,the media guidance application will execute the respective responsecombination from the B set (e.g., B1, B2, etc.). Suppose that thecontent provider established the device enablement rule states “IF theCreature appears in a scene, THEN enable the biometric device and promptthe biometric device to take a heart rate measurement; ELSE disable thebiometric device.” Suppose that the biometric device is the Fitbit band106 (FIG. 1A). The content criteria in this device enablement rule isthe appearance of the Creature, a character in “Creature from the BlackLagoon,” in a scene of the movie.

It should be noted that the biometric device, represented in FIG. 1A asa Fitbit band, may be any device or smart technology that can monitor acharacteristic of a user (e.g., facial expressions, movement, sounds,stress levels, eating habits, vitals, body temperature, etc.) Therefore,it is not necessary for the biometric device to be wearable, as depictedin FIG. 1A. The biometric device can be a sensor that monitors audio,video, motion, temperature, vitals, etc. For example, the biometricdevice may be an imaging device (e.g., Microsoft Kinect) which may trackthe user's expressions, pupil dilation, eye movements, etc. Thebiometric device may be a smart speaker (e.g., Google Home, Amazon Echo,etc.) that may monitor sounds made by the user, such as talking,laughing, crying, etc.

The media guidance application may retrieve metadata associated with thecontent being accessed on the user equipment that matches the contentcriteria. The media guidance application may refer to the metadataassociated with the movie to determine the characters that appear in themovie at various playback positions (e.g., the Creature). The deviceenablement rule may also specify the playback positions in which theCreature appears in the movie. For example, the device enablement rulemay state “IF playback is at position 0:12:57 or 0:50:12 or 1:24:23,THEN enable the biometric device and prompt the biometric device to takea heart rate measurement; ELSE disable the biometric device.” Thecontent criteria in this case points to specific playback positions inthe movie, such as 12 minutes and 57 seconds from the start (e.g.,0:12:57). Once playback to the user reaches this point, the contentcriteria may be satisfied.

It should be noted that the device enablement rule may enable multiplebiometric devices and may chain commands. For example, a deviceenablement rule may state “IF playback is at position 0:12:57, THENenable the first biometric device to take a heart rate measurement (ANDIF the heart rate measurement exceeds 100 beats per minute, enable asecond biometric device to collect audio samples; ELSE disable thesecond biometric device) ELSE disable the first biometric device.” Inthis case, the first biometric device may be a heart monitor and thesecond biometric device may be a smart speaker, a mobile phone, an audiorecorder, etc. The media guidance application may determine whether thefirst condition is met, and in response to determining that the firstcondition is met, may execute the condition in the parentheses. Inanother example, the device enablement rule may state “IF playback is atscene two, THEN enable the first biometric device to take a heart ratemeasurement and enable the second biometric device to assess body heat;ELSE disable the first biometric device and the second biometricdevice.” In this case, the first biometric device may be a light sensorthat approximates heart rate, and the second biometric device may be aheat gun or an infrared sensor that can collect the user's heatsignature. The biometric devices mentioned above may be wearable, or maybe placed far away from the user.

The media guidance application may compare the retrieved metadata to acondition specified by the device enablement rule, to determine whetherthe content being accessed on the user equipment satisfies the deviceenablement rule. For example, if the user is on playback position0:12:57, the media guidance application may determine that the contentcriteria of the device enablement rule is satisfied. Screen content 104displays the Creature on the screen.

The media guidance application may temporarily activate the identifiedbiometric device while the content being accessed continues to satisfythe device enablement rule. Returning to the overarching example, themedia guidance application may identify that the user is wearing his/herFitbit band (e.g., biometric device 106). In addition, the mediaguidance application may determine that the Creature has appeared in ascene being viewed by the user. In response, the media guidanceapplication may determine that the content criteria of the deviceenablement rule have been satisfied, and may enable the biometricdevice. For example, the media guidance application may utilize IR(infrared radiation) signals to activate the biometric device. The mediaguidance application may use the Internet to communicate with andactivate the biometric device. The media guidance application may alsoprompt the user to manually activate the biometric device. Furthermore,the user's Fitbit may remain enabled (e.g., as depicted with signalsemanating from biometric device 106) until the Creature exits the scene.

The media guidance application may measure a biometric response of theuser to the content being accessed while the biometric device isactivated. For example, while the Creature is in the scene being viewedby the user, the media guidance application may ensure that the user'sFitbit band is active and is collecting the user's heart rate.

The media guidance application may then generate a contentrecommendation based on the measured biometric response, as shown inscreen content 108 (FIG. 1B), which is a display of content that may beof interest to the user. Suppose that in a certain scene, the Creatureappears. Metadata associated with the device enablement rule mayindicate that the expected biometric response should be in a heart raterange of 90-100 beats per minute. The media guidance application mayrefer to a biometrics database that includes information about differentlevels of biometric responses. As previously mentioned, the biometricsdatabase may have a heart rate table classifying various heart ratelevels. For example, 80-100 beats per minute may be classified as anaccelerated heart rate and 100-120 may be classified as veryaccelerated, in the heart rate table. Based on the heart rate table, themedia guidance application may therefore determine that the user's heartrate is in the “very accelerated” heart rate class and is not in theexpected “accelerated” class, as indicated in the expected biometricresponse. In response, the content recommendations depicted in screencontent 108 may include media assets with a lower heart rate class(e.g., slightly-accelerated). It should also be noted that because theCreature is no longer on the screen, the media guidance application hasdeactivated (also interchangeably used with “disabled”) biometric device110 (FIG. 1B). As a result, the user's heart rate is no longer beingmeasured in FIG. 1B. Deactivating the device may simply involve stoppingthe device from collecting data until further instruction from the useror media guidance application. In some cases, deactivating may involvesending the biometric device into sleep mode, a lower power mode, orcompletely shutting the power down. Just as previously mentioned, themedia guidance application may communicate with the biometric deviceusing IR signals, over the Internet, or through prompts to the user formanually activating or deactivating. Communications between the mediaguidance application and the biometric device may be performed overcommunication network 514 (e.g., discussed in description of FIG. 5).

FIGS. 2-3 show illustrative display screens that may be used to providemedia guidance data. The display screens shown in FIGS. 2-3 may beimplemented on any suitable user equipment device or platform. While thedisplays of FIGS. 2-3 are illustrated as full screen displays, they mayalso be fully or partially overlaid over content being displayed. A usermay indicate a desire to access content information by selecting aselectable option provided in a display screen (e.g., a menu option, alistings option, an icon, a hyperlink, etc.) or pressing a dedicatedbutton (e.g., a GUIDE button) on a remote control or other user inputinterface or device. In response to the user's indication, the mediaguidance application may provide a display screen with media guidancedata organized in one of several ways, such as by time and channel in agrid, by time, by channel, by source, by content type, by category(e.g., movies, sports, news, children, or other categories ofprogramming), or other predefined, user-defined, or other organizationcriteria.

FIG. 2 shows illustrative grid of a program listings display 200arranged by time and channel that also enables access to different typesof content in a single display. Display 200 may include grid 202 with:(1) a column of channel/content type identifiers 204, where eachchannel/content type identifier (which is a cell in the column)identifies a different channel or content type available; and (2) a rowof time identifiers 206, where each time identifier (which is a cell inthe row) identifies a time block of programming. Grid 202 also includescells of program listings, such as program listing 208, where eachlisting provides the title of the program provided on the listing'sassociated channel and time. With a user input device, a user can selectprogram listings by moving highlight region 210. Information relating tothe program listing selected by highlight region 210 may be provided inprogram information region 212. Region 212 may include, for example, theprogram title, the program description, the time the program is provided(if applicable), the channel the program is on (if applicable), theprogram's rating, and other desired information.

In addition to providing access to linear programming (e.g., contentthat is scheduled to be transmitted to a plurality of user equipmentdevices at a predetermined time and is provided according to aschedule), the media guidance application also provides access tonon-linear programming (e.g., content accessible to a user equipmentdevice at any time and is not provided according to a schedule).Non-linear programming may include content from different contentsources including on-demand content (e.g., VOD), Internet content (e.g.,streaming media, downloadable media, etc.), locally stored content(e.g., content stored on any user equipment device described above orother storage device), or other time-independent content. On-demandcontent may include movies or any other content provided by a particularcontent provider (e.g., HBO On Demand providing “The Sopranos” and “CurbYour Enthusiasm”). HBO ON DEMAND is a service mark owned by Time WarnerCompany L. P. et al. and THE SOPRANOS and CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM aretrademarks owned by the Home Box Office, Inc. Internet content mayinclude web events, such as a chat session or Webcast, or contentavailable on-demand as streaming content or downloadable content throughan Internet web site or other Internet access (e.g. FTP).

Grid 202 may provide media guidance data for non-linear programmingincluding on-demand listing 214, recorded content listing 216, andInternet content listing 218. A display combining media guidance datafor content from different types of content sources is sometimesreferred to as a “mixed-media” display. Various permutations of thetypes of media guidance data that may be displayed that are differentthan display 200 may be based on user selection or guidance applicationdefinition (e.g., a display of only recorded and broadcast listings,only on-demand and broadcast listings, etc.). As illustrated, listings214, 216, and 218 are shown as spanning the entire time block displayedin grid 202 to indicate that selection of these listings may provideaccess to a display dedicated to on-demand listings, recorded listings,or Internet listings, respectively. In some embodiments, listings forthese content types may be included directly in grid 202. Additionalmedia guidance data may be displayed in response to the user selectingone of the navigational icons 220. (Pressing an arrow key on a userinput device may affect the display in a similar manner as selectingnavigational icons 220.)

Display 200 may also include video region 222, and options region 226.Video region 222 may allow the user to view and/or preview programs thatare currently available, will be available, or were available to theuser. The content of video region 222 may correspond to, or beindependent from, one of the listings displayed in grid 202. Griddisplays including a video region are sometimes referred to aspicture-in-guide (PIG) displays. PIG displays and their functionalitiesare described in greater detail in Satterfield et al. U.S. Pat. No.6,564,378, issued May 13, 2003 and Yuen et al. U.S. Pat. No. 6,239,794,issued May 29, 2001, which are hereby incorporated by reference hereinin their entireties. PIG displays may be included in other mediaguidance application display screens of the embodiments describedherein.

Options region 226 may allow the user to access different types ofcontent, media guidance application displays, and/or media guidanceapplication features. Options region 226 may be part of display 200 (andother display screens described herein), or may be invoked by a user byselecting an on-screen option or pressing a dedicated or assignablebutton on a user input device. The selectable options within optionsregion 226 may concern features related to program listings in grid 202or may include options available from a main menu display. Featuresrelated to program listings may include searching for other air times orways of receiving a program, recording a program, enabling seriesrecording of a program, setting program and/or channel as a favorite,purchasing a program, or other features. Options available from a mainmenu display may include search options, VOD options, parental controloptions, Internet options, cloud-based options, device synchronizationoptions, second screen device options, options to access various typesof media guidance data displays, options to subscribe to a premiumservice, options to edit a user's profile, options to access a browseoverlay, or other options.

The media guidance application may be personalized based on a user'spreferences. A personalized media guidance application allows a user tocustomize displays and features to create a personalized “experience”with the media guidance application. This personalized experience may becreated by allowing a user to input these customizations and/or by themedia guidance application monitoring user activity to determine varioususer preferences. Users may access their personalized guidanceapplication by logging in or otherwise identifying themselves to theguidance application. Customization of the media guidance applicationmay be made in accordance with a user profile. The customizations mayinclude varying presentation schemes (e.g., color scheme of displays,font size of text, etc.), aspects of content listings displayed (e.g.,only HDTV or only 3D programming, user-specified broadcast channelsbased on favorite channel selections, re-ordering the display ofchannels, recommended content, etc.), desired recording features (e.g.,recording or series recordings for particular users, recording quality,etc.), parental control settings, customized presentation of Internetcontent (e.g., presentation of social media content, e-mail,electronically delivered articles, etc.) and other desiredcustomizations.

The media guidance application may allow a user to provide user profileinformation or may automatically compile user profile information. Themedia guidance application may, for example, monitor the content theuser accesses and/or other interactions the user may have with theguidance application. Additionally, the media guidance application mayobtain all or part of other user profiles that are related to aparticular user (e.g., from other web sites on the Internet the useraccesses, such as www.Tivo.com, from other media guidance applicationsthe user accesses, from other interactive applications the useraccesses, from another user equipment device of the user, etc.), and/orobtain information about the user from other sources that the mediaguidance application may access. As a result, a user can be providedwith a unified guidance application experience across the user'sdifferent user equipment devices. This type of user experience isdescribed in greater detail below in connection with FIG. 5. Additionalpersonalized media guidance application features are described ingreater detail in Ellis et al., U.S. Patent Application Publication No.2005/0251827, filed Jul. 11, 2005, Boyer et al., U.S. Pat. No.7,165,098, issued Jan. 16, 2007, and Ellis et al., U.S. PatentApplication Publication No. 2002/0174430, filed Feb. 21, 2002, which arehereby incorporated by reference herein in their entireties.

Another display arrangement for providing media guidance is shown inFIG. 3. Video mosaic display 300 includes selectable options 302 forcontent information organized based on content type, genre, and/or otherorganization criteria. In display 300, television listings option 304 isselected, thus providing listings 306, 308, 310, and 312 as broadcastprogram listings. In display 300 the listings may provide graphicalimages including cover art, still images from the content, video clippreviews, live video from the content, or other types of content thatindicate to a user the content being described by the media guidancedata in the listing. Each of the graphical listings may also beaccompanied by text to provide further information about the contentassociated with the listing. For example, listing 308 may include morethan one portion, including media portion 314 and text portion 316.Media portion 314 and/or text portion 316 may be selectable to viewcontent in full-screen or to view information related to the contentdisplayed in media portion 314 (e.g., to view listings for the channelthat the video is displayed on).

The listings in display 300 are of different sizes (i.e., listing 306 islarger than listings 308, 310, and 312), but if desired, all thelistings may be the same size. Listings may be of different sizes orgraphically accentuated to indicate degrees of interest to the user orto emphasize certain content, as desired by the content provider orbased on user preferences. Various systems and methods for graphicallyaccentuating content listings are discussed in, for example, Yates, U.S.Patent Application Publication No. 2010/0153885, filed Nov. 12, 2009,which is hereby incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.

Users may access content and the media guidance application (and itsdisplay screens described above and below) from one or more of theiruser equipment devices. FIG. 4 shows a generalized embodiment ofillustrative user equipment device 400. More specific implementations ofuser equipment devices are discussed below in connection with FIG. 5.User equipment device 400 may receive content and data via input/output(hereinafter “I/O”) path 402. I/O path 402 may provide content (e.g.,broadcast programming, on-demand programming, Internet content, contentavailable over a local area network (LAN) or wide area network (WAN),and/or other content) and data to control circuitry 404, which includesprocessing circuitry 406 and storage 408. Control circuitry 404 may beused to send and receive commands, requests, and other suitable datausing I/O path 402. I/O path 402 may connect control circuitry 404 (andspecifically processing circuitry 406) to one or more communicationspaths (described below). I/O functions may be provided by one or more ofthese communications paths, but are shown as a single path in FIG. 4 toavoid overcomplicating the drawing.

Control circuitry 404 may be based on any suitable processing circuitrysuch as processing circuitry 406. As referred to herein, processingcircuitry should be understood to mean circuitry based on one or moremicroprocessors, microcontrollers, digital signal processors,programmable logic devices, field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs),application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), etc., and may includea multi-core processor (e.g., dual-core, quad-core, hexa-core, or anysuitable number of cores) or supercomputer. In some embodiments,processing circuitry may be distributed across multiple separateprocessors or processing units, for example, multiple of the same typeof processing units (e.g., two Intel Core i7 processors) or multipledifferent processors (e.g., an Intel Core i5 processor and an Intel Corei7 processor). In some embodiments, control circuitry 404 executesinstructions for a media guidance application stored in memory (i.e.,storage 408). Specifically, control circuitry 404 may be instructed bythe media guidance application to perform the functions discussed aboveand below. For example, the media guidance application may provideinstructions to control circuitry 404 to generate the media guidancedisplays. In some implementations, any action performed by controlcircuitry 404 may be based on instructions received from the mediaguidance application.

In client-server based embodiments, control circuitry 404 may includecommunications circuitry suitable for communicating with a guidanceapplication server or other networks or servers. The instructions forcarrying out the above-mentioned functionality may be stored on theguidance application server. Communications circuitry may include acable modem, an integrated services digital network (ISDN) modem, adigital subscriber line (DSL) modem, a telephone modem, Ethernet card,or a wireless modem for communications with other equipment, or anyother suitable communications circuitry. Such communications may involvethe Internet or any other suitable communications networks or paths(which is described in more detail in connection with FIG. 5). Inaddition, communications circuitry may include circuitry that enablespeer-to-peer communication of user equipment devices, or communicationof user equipment devices in locations remote from each other (describedin more detail below).

Memory may be an electronic storage device provided as storage 408 thatis part of control circuitry 404. As referred to herein, the phrase“electronic storage device” or “storage device” should be understood tomean any device for storing electronic data, computer software, orfirmware, such as random-access memory, read-only memory, hard drives,optical drives, digital video disc (DVD) recorders, compact disc (CD)recorders, BLU-RAY disc (BD) recorders, BLU-RAY 3D disc recorders,digital video recorders (DVR, sometimes called a personal videorecorder, or PVR), solid state devices, quantum storage devices, gamingconsoles, gaming media, or any other suitable fixed or removable storagedevices, and/or any combination of the same. Storage 408 may be used tostore various types of content described herein as well as mediaguidance data described above. Nonvolatile memory may also be used(e.g., to launch a boot-up routine and other instructions). Cloud-basedstorage, described in relation to FIG. 5, may be used to supplementstorage 408 or instead of storage 408.

Control circuitry 404 may include video generating circuitry and tuningcircuitry, such as one or more analog tuners, one or more MPEG-2decoders or other digital decoding circuitry, high-definition tuners, orany other suitable tuning or video circuits or combinations of suchcircuits. Encoding circuitry (e.g., for converting over-the-air, analog,or digital signals to MPEG signals for storage) may also be provided.Control circuitry 404 may also include scaler circuitry for upconvertingand downconverting content into the preferred output format of the userequipment 400. Circuitry 404 may also include digital-to-analogconverter circuitry and analog-to-digital converter circuitry forconverting between digital and analog signals. The tuning and encodingcircuitry may be used by the user equipment device to receive and todisplay, to play, or to record content. The tuning and encodingcircuitry may also be used to receive guidance data. The circuitrydescribed herein, including for example, the tuning, video generating,encoding, decoding, encrypting, decrypting, scaler, and analog/digitalcircuitry, may be implemented using software running on one or moregeneral purpose or specialized processors. Multiple tuners may beprovided to handle simultaneous tuning functions (e.g., watch and recordfunctions, picture-in-picture (PIP) functions, multiple-tuner recording,etc.). If storage 408 is provided as a separate device from userequipment 400, the tuning and encoding circuitry (including multipletuners) may be associated with storage 408.

A user may send instructions to control circuitry 404 using user inputinterface 410. User input interface 410 may be any suitable userinterface, such as a remote control, mouse, trackball, keypad, keyboard,touch screen, touchpad, stylus input, joystick, voice recognitioninterface, or other user input interfaces. Display 412 may be providedas a stand-alone device or integrated with other elements of userequipment device 400. For example, display 412 may be a touchscreen ortouch-sensitive display. In such circumstances, user input interface 410may be integrated with or combined with display 412. Display 412 may beone or more of a monitor, a television, a liquid crystal display (LCD)for a mobile device, amorphous silicon display, low temperature polysilicon display, electronic ink display, electrophoretic display, activematrix display, electro-wetting display, electrofluidic display, cathoderay tube display, light-emitting diode display, electroluminescentdisplay, plasma display panel, high-performance addressing display,thin-film transistor display, organic light-emitting diode display,surface-conduction electron-emitter display (SED), laser television,carbon nanotubes, quantum dot display, interferometric modulatordisplay, or any other suitable equipment for displaying visual images.In some embodiments, display 412 may be HDTV-capable. In someembodiments, display 412 may be a 3D display, and the interactive mediaguidance application and any suitable content may be displayed in 3D. Avideo card or graphics card may generate the output to the display 412.The video card may offer various functions such as accelerated renderingof 3D scenes and 2D graphics, MPEG-2/MPEG-4 decoding, TV output, or theability to connect multiple monitors. The video card may be anyprocessing circuitry described above in relation to control circuitry404. The video card may be integrated with the control circuitry 404.Speakers 414 may be provided as integrated with other elements of userequipment device 400 or may be stand-alone units. The audio component ofvideos and other content displayed on display 412 may be played throughspeakers 414. In some embodiments, the audio may be distributed to areceiver (not shown), which processes and outputs the audio via speakers414.

The guidance application may be implemented using any suitablearchitecture. For example, it may be a stand-alone applicationwholly-implemented on user equipment device 400. In such an approach,instructions of the application are stored locally (e.g., in storage408), and data for use by the application is downloaded on a periodicbasis (e.g., from an out-of-band feed, from an Internet resource, orusing another suitable approach). Control circuitry 404 may retrieveinstructions of the application from storage 408 and process theinstructions to generate any of the displays discussed herein. Based onthe processed instructions, control circuitry 404 may determine whataction to perform when input is received from input interface 410. Forexample, movement of a cursor on a display up/down may be indicated bythe processed instructions when input interface 410 indicates that anup/down button was selected.

In some embodiments, the media guidance application is a client-serverbased application. Data for use by a thick or thin client implemented onuser equipment device 400 is retrieved on-demand by issuing requests toa server remote to the user equipment device 400. In one example of aclient-server based guidance application, control circuitry 404 runs aweb browser that interprets web pages provided by a remote server. Forexample, the remote server may store the instructions for theapplication in a storage device. The remote server may process thestored instructions using circuitry (e.g., control circuitry 404) andgenerate the displays discussed above and below. The client device mayreceive the displays generated by the remote server and may display thecontent of the displays locally on equipment device 400. This way, theprocessing of the instructions is performed remotely by the server whilethe resulting displays are provided locally on equipment device 400.Equipment device 400 may receive inputs from the user via inputinterface 410 and transmit those inputs to the remote server forprocessing and generating the corresponding displays. For example,equipment device 400 may transmit a communication to the remote serverindicating that an up/down button was selected via input interface 410.The remote server may process instructions in accordance with that inputand generate a display of the application corresponding to the input(e.g., a display that moves a cursor up/down). The generated display isthen transmitted to equipment device 400 for presentation to the user.

In some embodiments, the media guidance application is downloaded andinterpreted or otherwise run by an interpreter or virtual machine (runby control circuitry 404). In some embodiments, the guidance applicationmay be encoded in the ETV Binary Interchange Format (EBIF), received bycontrol circuitry 404 as part of a suitable feed, and interpreted by auser agent running on control circuitry 404. For example, the guidanceapplication may be an EBIF application. In some embodiments, theguidance application may be defined by a series of JAVA-based files thatare received and run by a local virtual machine or other suitablemiddleware executed by control circuitry 404. In some of suchembodiments (e.g., those employing MPEG-2 or other digital mediaencoding schemes), the guidance application may be, for example, encodedand transmitted in an MPEG-2 object carousel with the MPEG audio andvideo packets of a program.

User equipment device 400 of FIG. 4 can be implemented in system 500 ofFIG. 5 as user television equipment 502, user computer equipment 504,wireless user communications device 506, or any other type of userequipment suitable for accessing content, such as a non-portable gamingmachine. For simplicity, these devices may be referred to hereincollectively as user equipment or user equipment devices, and may besubstantially similar to user equipment devices described above. Userequipment devices, on which a media guidance application may beimplemented, may function as a standalone device or may be part of anetwork of devices. Various network configurations of devices may beimplemented and are discussed in more detail below.

A user equipment device utilizing at least some of the system featuresdescribed above in connection with FIG. 4 may not be classified solelyas user television equipment 502, user computer equipment 504, or awireless user communications device 506. For example, user televisionequipment 502 may, like some user computer equipment 504, beInternet-enabled allowing for access to Internet content, while usercomputer equipment 504 may, like some television equipment 502, includea tuner allowing for access to television programming. The mediaguidance application may have the same layout on various different typesof user equipment or may be tailored to the display capabilities of theuser equipment. For example, on user computer equipment 504, theguidance application may be provided as a web site accessed by a webbrowser. In another example, the guidance application may be scaled downfor wireless user communications devices 506.

In system 500, there is typically more than one of each type of userequipment device but only one of each is shown in FIG. 5 to avoidovercomplicating the drawing. In addition, each user may utilize morethan one type of user equipment device and also more than one of eachtype of user equipment device.

In some embodiments, a user equipment device (e.g., user televisionequipment 502, user computer equipment 504, wireless user communicationsdevice 506) may be referred to as a “second screen device.” For example,a second screen device may supplement content presented on a first userequipment device. The content presented on the second screen device maybe any suitable content that supplements the content presented on thefirst device. In some embodiments, the second screen device provides aninterface for adjusting settings and display preferences of the firstdevice. In some embodiments, the second screen device is configured forinteracting with other second screen devices or for interacting with asocial network. The second screen device can be located in the same roomas the first device, a different room from the first device but in thesame house or building, or in a different building from the firstdevice.

The user may also set various settings to maintain consistent mediaguidance application settings across in-home devices and remote devices.Settings include those described herein, as well as channel and programfavorites, programming preferences that the guidance applicationutilizes to make programming recommendations, display preferences, andother desirable guidance settings. For example, if a user sets a channelas a favorite on, for example, the web site www.Tivo.com on theirpersonal computer at their office, the same channel would appear as afavorite on the user's in-home devices (e.g., user television equipmentand user computer equipment) as well as the user's mobile devices, ifdesired. Therefore, changes made on one user equipment device can changethe guidance experience on another user equipment device, regardless ofwhether they are the same or a different type of user equipment device.In addition, the changes made may be based on settings input by a user,as well as user activity monitored by the guidance application.

The user equipment devices may be coupled to communications network 514.Namely, user television equipment 502, user computer equipment 504, andwireless user communications device 506 are coupled to communicationsnetwork 514 via communications paths 508, 510, and 512, respectively.Communications network 514 may be one or more networks including theInternet, a mobile phone network, mobile voice or data network (e.g., a4G or LTE network), cable network, public switched telephone network, orother types of communications network or combinations of communicationsnetworks. Paths 508, 510, and 512 may separately or together include oneor more communications paths, such as, a satellite path, a fiber-opticpath, a cable path, a path that supports Internet communications (e.g.,IPTV), free-space connections (e.g., for broadcast or other wirelesssignals), or any other suitable wired or wireless communications path orcombination of such paths. Path 512 is drawn with dotted lines toindicate that in the exemplary embodiment shown in FIG. 5 it is awireless path and paths 508 and 510 are drawn as solid lines to indicatethey are wired paths (although these paths may be wireless paths, ifdesired). Communications with the user equipment devices may be providedby one or more of these communications paths, but are shown as a singlepath in FIG. 5 to avoid overcomplicating the drawing.

Although communications paths are not drawn between user equipmentdevices, these devices may communicate directly with each other viacommunication paths, such as those described above in connection withpaths 508, 510, and 512, as well as other short-range point-to-pointcommunication paths, such as USB cables, IEEE 1394 cables, wirelesspaths (e.g., Bluetooth, infrared, IEEE 802-11x, etc.), or othershort-range communication via wired or wireless paths. BLUETOOTH is acertification mark owned by Bluetooth SIG, INC. The user equipmentdevices may also communicate with each other directly through anindirect path via communications network 514.

System 500 includes content source 516 and media guidance data source518 coupled to communications network 514 via communication paths 520and 522, respectively. Paths 520 and 522 may include any of thecommunication paths described above in connection with paths 508, 510,and 512. Communications with the content source 516 and media guidancedata source 518 may be exchanged over one or more communications paths,but are shown as a single path in FIG. 5 to avoid overcomplicating thedrawing. In addition, there may be more than one of each of contentsource 516 and media guidance data source 518, but only one of each isshown in FIG. 5 to avoid overcomplicating the drawing. (The differenttypes of each of these sources are discussed below.) If desired, contentsource 516 and media guidance data source 518 may be integrated as onesource device. Although communications between sources 516 and 518 withuser equipment devices 502, 504, and 506 are shown as throughcommunications network 514, in some embodiments, sources 516 and 518 maycommunicate directly with user equipment devices 502, 504, and 506 viacommunication paths (not shown) such as those described above inconnection with paths 508, 510, and 512.

Content source 516 may include one or more types of content distributionequipment including a television distribution facility, cable systemheadend, satellite distribution facility, programming sources (e.g.,television broadcasters, such as NBC, ABC, HBO, etc.), intermediatedistribution facilities and/or servers, Internet providers, on-demandmedia servers, and other content providers. NBC is a trademark owned bythe National Broadcasting Company, Inc., ABC is a trademark owned by theAmerican Broadcasting Company, Inc., and HBO is a trademark owned by theHome Box Office, Inc. Content source 516 may be the originator ofcontent (e.g., a television broadcaster, a Webcast provider, etc.) ormay not be the originator of content (e.g., an on-demand contentprovider, an Internet provider of content of broadcast programs fordownloading, etc.). Content source 516 may include cable sources,satellite providers, on-demand providers, Internet providers,over-the-top content providers, or other providers of content. Contentsource 516 may also include a remote media server used to storedifferent types of content (including video content selected by a user),in a location remote from any of the user equipment devices. Systems andmethods for remote storage of content, and providing remotely storedcontent to user equipment are discussed in greater detail in connectionwith Ellis et al., U.S. Pat. No. 7,761,892, issued Jul. 20, 2010, whichis hereby incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.

Media guidance data source 518 may provide media guidance data, such asthe media guidance data described above. Media guidance data may beprovided to the user equipment devices using any suitable approach. Insome embodiments, the guidance application may be a stand-aloneinteractive television program guide that receives program guide datavia a data feed (e.g., a continuous feed or trickle feed). Programschedule data and other guidance data may be provided to the userequipment on a television channel sideband, using an in-band digitalsignal, using an out-of-band digital signal, or by any other suitabledata transmission technique. Program schedule data and other mediaguidance data may be provided to user equipment on multiple analog ordigital television channels.

In some embodiments, guidance data from media guidance data source 518may be provided to users' equipment using a client-server approach. Forexample, a user equipment device may pull media guidance data from aserver, or a server may push media guidance data to a user equipmentdevice. In some embodiments, a guidance application client residing onthe user's equipment may initiate sessions with source 518 to obtainguidance data when needed, e.g., when the guidance data is out of dateor when the user equipment device receives a request from the user toreceive data. Media guidance may be provided to the user equipment withany suitable frequency (e.g., continuously, daily, a user-specifiedperiod of time, a system-specified period of time, in response to arequest from user equipment, etc.). Media guidance data source 518 mayprovide user equipment devices 502, 504, and 506 the media guidanceapplication itself or software updates for the media guidanceapplication.

In some embodiments, the media guidance data may include viewer data.For example, the viewer data may include current and/or historical useractivity information (e.g., what content the user typically watches,what times of day the user watches content, whether the user interactswith a social network, at what times the user interacts with a socialnetwork to post information, what types of content the user typicallywatches (e.g., pay TV or free TV), mood, brain activity information,etc.). The media guidance data may also include subscription data. Forexample, the subscription data may identify to which sources or servicesa given user subscribes and/or to which sources or services the givenuser has previously subscribed but later terminated access (e.g.,whether the user subscribes to premium channels, whether the user hasadded a premium level of services, whether the user has increasedInternet speed). In some embodiments, the viewer data and/or thesubscription data may identify patterns of a given user for a period ofmore than one year. The media guidance data may include a model (e.g., asurvivor model) used for generating a score that indicates a likelihooda given user will terminate access to a service/source. For example, themedia guidance application may process the viewer data with thesubscription data using the model to generate a value or score thatindicates a likelihood of whether the given user will terminate accessto a particular service or source. In particular, a higher score mayindicate a higher level of confidence that the user will terminateaccess to a particular service or source. Based on the score, the mediaguidance application may generate promotions that entice the user tokeep the particular service or source indicated by the score as one towhich the user will likely terminate access.

Media guidance applications may be, for example, stand-aloneapplications implemented on user equipment devices. For example, themedia guidance application may be implemented as software or a set ofexecutable instructions which may be stored in storage 408, and executedby control circuitry 404 of a user equipment device 400. In someembodiments, media guidance applications may be client-serverapplications where only a client application resides on the userequipment device, and server application resides on a remote server. Forexample, media guidance applications may be implemented partially as aclient application on control circuitry 404 of user equipment device 400and partially on a remote server as a server application (e.g., mediaguidance data source 518) running on control circuitry of the remoteserver. When executed by control circuitry of the remote server (such asmedia guidance data source 518), the media guidance application mayinstruct the control circuitry to generate the guidance applicationdisplays and transmit the generated displays to the user equipmentdevices. The server application may instruct the control circuitry ofthe media guidance data source 518 to transmit data for storage on theuser equipment. The client application may instruct control circuitry ofthe receiving user equipment to generate the guidance applicationdisplays.

Content and/or media guidance data delivered to user equipment devices502, 504, and 506 may be over-the-top (OTT) content. OTT contentdelivery allows Internet-enabled user devices, including any userequipment device described above, to receive content that is transferredover the Internet, including any content described above, in addition tocontent received over cable or satellite connections. OTT content isdelivered via an Internet connection provided by an Internet serviceprovider (ISP), but a third party distributes the content. The ISP maynot be responsible for the viewing abilities, copyrights, orredistribution of the content, and may only transfer IP packets providedby the OTT content provider. Examples of OTT content providers includeYOUTUBE, NETFLIX, and HULU, which provide audio and video via IPpackets. Youtube is a trademark owned by Google Inc., Netflix is atrademark owned by Netflix Inc., and Hulu is a trademark owned by Hulu,LLC. OTT content providers may additionally or alternatively providemedia guidance data described above. In addition to content and/or mediaguidance data, providers of OTT content can distribute media guidanceapplications (e.g., web-based applications or cloud-based applications),or the content can be displayed by media guidance applications stored onthe user equipment device.

Media guidance system 500 is intended to illustrate a number ofapproaches, or network configurations, by which user equipment devicesand sources of content and guidance data may communicate with each otherfor the purpose of accessing content and providing media guidance. Theembodiments described herein may be applied in any one or a subset ofthese approaches, or in a system employing other approaches fordelivering content and providing media guidance. The following fourapproaches provide specific illustrations of the generalized example ofFIG. 5.

In one approach, user equipment devices may communicate with each otherwithin a home network. User equipment devices can communicate with eachother directly via short-range point-to-point communication schemesdescribed above, via indirect paths through a hub or other similardevice provided on a home network, or via communications network 514.Each of the multiple individuals in a single home may operate differentuser equipment devices on the home network. As a result, it may bedesirable for various media guidance information or settings to becommunicated between the different user equipment devices. For example,it may be desirable for users to maintain consistent media guidanceapplication settings on different user equipment devices within a homenetwork, as described in greater detail in Ellis et al., U.S. PatentPublication No. 2005/0251827, filed Jul. 11, 2005. Different types ofuser equipment devices in a home network may also communicate with eachother to transmit content. For example, a user may transmit content fromuser computer equipment to a portable video player or portable musicplayer.

In a second approach, users may have multiple types of user equipment bywhich they access content and obtain media guidance. For example, someusers may have home networks that are accessed by in-home and mobiledevices. Users may control in-home devices via a media guidanceapplication implemented on a remote device. For example, users mayaccess an online media guidance application on a website via a personalcomputer at their office, or a mobile device such as a PDA orweb-enabled mobile telephone. The user may set various settings (e.g.,recordings, reminders, or other settings) on the online guidanceapplication to control the user's in-home equipment. The online guidemay control the user's equipment directly, or by communicating with amedia guidance application on the user's in-home equipment. Varioussystems and methods for user equipment devices communicating, where theuser equipment devices are in locations remote from each other, isdiscussed in, for example, Ellis et al., U.S. Pat. No. 8,046,801, issuedOct. 25, 2011, which is hereby incorporated by reference herein in itsentirety.

In a third approach, users of user equipment devices inside and outsidea home can use their media guidance application to communicate directlywith content source 516 to access content. Specifically, within a home,users of user television equipment 502 and user computer equipment 504may access the media guidance application to navigate among and locatedesirable content. Users may also access the media guidance applicationoutside of the home using wireless user communications devices 506 tonavigate among and locate desirable content.

In a fourth approach, user equipment devices may operate in a cloudcomputing environment to access cloud services. In a cloud computingenvironment, various types of computing services for content sharing,storage or distribution (e.g., video sharing sites or social networkingsites) are provided by a collection of network-accessible computing andstorage resources, referred to as “the cloud.” For example, the cloudcan include a collection of server computing devices, which may belocated centrally or at distributed locations, that provide cloud-basedservices to various types of users and devices connected via a networksuch as the Internet via communications network 514. These cloudresources may include one or more content sources 516 and one or moremedia guidance data sources 518. In addition or in the alternative, theremote computing sites may include other user equipment devices, such asuser television equipment 502, user computer equipment 504, and wirelessuser communications device 506. For example, the other user equipmentdevices may provide access to a stored copy of a video or a streamedvideo. In such embodiments, user equipment devices may operate in apeer-to-peer manner without communicating with a central server.

The cloud provides access to services, such as content storage, contentsharing, or social networking services, among other examples, as well asaccess to any content described above, for user equipment devices.Services can be provided in the cloud through cloud computing serviceproviders, or through other providers of online services. For example,the cloud-based services can include a content storage service, acontent sharing site, a social networking site, or other services viawhich user-sourced content is distributed for viewing by others onconnected devices. These cloud-based services may allow a user equipmentdevice to store content to the cloud and to receive content from thecloud rather than storing content locally and accessing locally-storedcontent.

A user may use various content capture devices, such as camcorders,digital cameras with video mode, audio recorders, mobile phones, andhandheld computing devices, to record content. The user can uploadcontent to a content storage service on the cloud either directly, forexample, from user computer equipment 504 or wireless usercommunications device 506 having content capture feature. Alternatively,the user can first transfer the content to a user equipment device, suchas user computer equipment 504. The user equipment device storing thecontent uploads the content to the cloud using a data transmissionservice on communications network 514. In some embodiments, the userequipment device itself is a cloud resource, and other user equipmentdevices can access the content directly from the user equipment deviceon which the user stored the content.

Cloud resources may be accessed by a user equipment device using, forexample, a web browser, a media guidance application, a desktopapplication, a mobile application, and/or any combination of accessapplications of the same. The user equipment device may be a cloudclient that relies on cloud computing for application delivery, or theuser equipment device may have some functionality without access tocloud resources. For example, some applications running on the userequipment device may be cloud applications, i.e., applications deliveredas a service over the Internet, while other applications may be storedand run on the user equipment device. In some embodiments, a user devicemay receive content from multiple cloud resources simultaneously. Forexample, a user device can stream audio from one cloud resource whiledownloading content from a second cloud resource. Or a user device candownload content from multiple cloud resources for more efficientdownloading. In some embodiments, user equipment devices can use cloudresources for processing operations such as the processing operationsperformed by processing circuitry described in relation to FIG. 4.

As referred herein, the term “in response to” refers to initiated as aresult of. For example, a first action being performed in response to asecond action may include interstitial steps between the first actionand the second action. As referred herein, the term “directly inresponse to” refers to caused by. For example, a first action beingperformed directly in response to a second action may not includeinterstitial steps between the first action and the second action.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart of an illustrative process for dynamicallyenabling and disabling a biometric device, in accordance with someembodiments of the disclosure. It should be noted that process 600 orany step thereof could be performed on, or provided by, any of thedevices shown in FIGS. 4-5. For example, process 600 may be executed bycontrol circuitry 404 (FIG. 4) as instructed by a media guidanceapplication implemented on a user device (e.g., user equipment devices502, 504, and/or 506 (FIG. 5)) in order to dynamically enable anddisable a biometric device. In addition, one or more steps of process600 may be incorporated into or combined with one or more steps of anyother process or embodiment (e.g., as described in relation to FIGS. 1A,1B, and 7-13).

At step 602, control circuitry 404 (FIG. 4) determines that a user isaccessing content on user equipment. The user equipment may be usertelevision equipment 502, user computer equipment 504, and/or wirelesscommunications device 506 (FIG. 5). Control circuitry 404 may retrievethe content from the media content source 516 and may generate, fordisplay, on display 412. Suppose that the user is viewing the horrormovie “The Conjuring.” It should be noted that the content beingaccessed by the user may be any media including, but not limited to,videos, audio, graphics and/or games.

At step 604, control circuitry 404 (FIG. 4) retrieves a deviceenablement rule associated with the content. Control circuitry 404 mayrefer to the media guidance data source 418 to retrieve metadataassociated with the content being accessed. The metadata may includedevice enablement rules associated with the content. For example, eachscene of the movie may be associated with a device enablement rulecreated by the content provider. Accordingly, the metadata may include alist of scenes that details the name of a scene, the time the scenestarts in the movie, information about the content in the scene, adevice enablement rule, and the rule's compatibility with variousbiometric devices. Suppose that control circuitry 404 determines that“The Conjuring” has seventy scenes. Furthermore, based on the metadataof the movie, control circuitry 404 determines that scene two has adevice enablement rule associated with the Fitbit band and various heartrate monitors. The device enablement rule may prompt the biometricdevice to monitor the user's heart rate throughout the duration ofplayback of scene two. In addition, the device enablement rule maycontain information about an expected biometric response (e.g., anexciting scene in a movie may be expected to cause an accelerated heartrate).

At step 606, control circuitry 404 (FIG. 4) determines whether thecontent currently being accessed satisfies the device enablement rule.As previously mentioned, the metadata of the content may includeinformation about the device enablement rule, and the rule'scompatibility with various biometric devices. More specifically thecompatibility information may include a list of biometric devices thatare associated with the device enablement rule. In addition, controlcircuitry 404 may determine that the user has begun viewing scene two of“The Conjuring.” Furthermore, control circuitry 404 may determine thatthe user is using a biometric device (e.g., Fitbit band) that is in thelist of biometric devices. In some embodiments, control circuitry 404may determine whether the biometric device is being used by the user.For example, control circuitry 404 may communicate with the user'sFitbit band to determine whether the user is wearing the band. Controlcircuitry 404 may also issue discovery commands to all devices in thehousehold or within range of the display device over communicationnetwork 514 (FIG. 5). It should be noted that biometric devices usuallyhave a built-in sensor to determine whether the user is in contact withthe biometric device. If the user is not near the Fitbit band (e.g.,user is viewing the movie in the living room and the biometric device isin the user's bedroom), control circuitry 404 may determine that thedevice does not satisfy the device enablement rule because it cannotphysically measure the user's heart rate if the content criteria is met.In response, control circuitry 404 may determine that the contentcurrently being accessed satisfies the device enablement rule.

At step 608, in response to determining that the content currently beingaccessed satisfies the device enablement rule, control circuitry 404(FIG. 4) temporarily activates a biometric device associated with theuser while the content currently being accessed continues to satisfy thedevice enablement rule. The term “temporarily” indicates that thebiometric device will be enabled for a set amount of time during whichthe device enablement rule is satisfied. Once control circuitry 404determines that the device enablement rule is no longer being satisfied,the biometric device is disabled/deactivated. For example, controlcircuitry 404 may keep the Fitbit's heart rate monitoring feature activewhile scene two is being generated for display to the user.

At step 610, control circuitry 404 (FIG. 4) of the biometric devicemeasures a biometric response of the user to the content currently beingaccessed while the biometric device is activated. Suppose that theFitbit acquires a set of heart rate measurements every two minutes andthat scene two is ten minutes in duration. While the Fitbit's heart ratemonitoring feature is activated for the ten-minute duration of scenetwo, the Fitbit may collect six sets of heart rate measurements.Furthermore, the Fitbit may communicate with control circuitry 404 onthe user's set-top box over communication network 514 (FIG. 5). Forexample, the Fitbit may transfer the collected heart rate measurementsto the set-top box over a Bluetooth or Wi-Fi connection. Similarly, theset-top box may issue activation/deactivation commands to the Fitbitusing Bluetooth or Wi-Fi.

At step 612, control circuitry 404 (FIG. 4) generates a contentrecommendation based on the measured biometric response. Suppose thatscene two is a horror scene with multiple jump scares. The biometricresponse may be the set of heart rate measurements acquired by theFitbit. The device enablement rule may indicate that the expectedbiometric response should be in a heart rate range of 90-100 beats perminute. Control circuitry 404 may refer to a biometrics database instorage 408 (FIG. 4) that includes information about different levels ofbiometric responses. The biometrics database may have a heart rate tableclassifying various heart rate levels. For example, 60-80 beats perminute may be classified as a normal heart rate, whereas 80-100 beatsper minute may be classified as an accelerated heart rate, in the heartrate table. Control circuitry 404 may determine that the average heartrate from the six sets of measurements is 72 beats per minute. Based onthe heart rate table, control circuitry 404 may therefore determine thatthe user's heart rate is in the normal heart rate class and is not inthe expected “accelerated” class, as indicated in the expected biometricresponse. As a result, control circuitry 404 may search for content thatcan accelerate the user's heart rate. For example, the user may not findthe scenes in “The Conjuring” scary and was thus unaffected by scenetwo. Control circuitry 404 may determine that the genre of the user'saccessed content “The Conjuring” is horror. Accordingly, controlcircuitry 404 may determine that the user should be recommended contentfrom the horror genre that is considered scarier. Control circuitry 404may refer to the Internet to search for scarier movies, or may refer tomedia guidance data source 618 (FIG. 6) to search for content withdevice enablement rules associated with a “very accelerated heart rate”expected biometric response. Once control circuitry 404 has identified alist of content associated with a “very accelerated heart rate,” controlcircuitry 404 may search for content in the list of content that isassociated with the horror genre in their respective metadata. Supposethat control circuitry 404 identifies the movie “It: Chapter One” whichfeatures scenes with device enablement rules associated with “veryaccelerated” heart rates. Control circuitry 404 may generate fordisplay, the recommendation, after the viewer has stopped watching “TheConjuring” on display 412 (FIG. 4), recommending “It: Chapter One.” Insome embodiments, control circuitry 404 may generate for display, therecommendation, on a second display screen (e.g., the user'ssmartphone).

It is contemplated that the steps or descriptions of FIG. 6 may be usedwith any other embodiment of this disclosure. In addition, the steps anddescriptions described in relation to FIG. 6 may be done in alternativeorders or in parallel to further the purposes of this disclosure. Forexample, each of these steps may be performed in any order or inparallel or substantially simultaneously to reduce lag or increase thespeed of the system or method. Any of these steps may also be skipped oromitted from the process. Furthermore, it should be noted that any ofthe devices or equipment discussed in relation to FIGS. 4-5 could beused to perform one or more of the steps in FIG. 6.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart of a detailed illustrative process for dynamicallyenabling and disabling a biometric device, in accordance with someembodiments of the disclosure. It should be noted that process 700 orany step thereof could be performed on, or provided by, any of thedevices shown in FIGS. 4-5. For example, process 700 may be executed bycontrol circuitry 404 (FIG. 4) as instructed by a media guidanceapplication implemented on a user device (e.g., user equipment devices502, 504, and/or 506 (FIG. 5)) in order to dynamically enable anddisable a biometric device. In addition, one or more steps of process700 may be incorporated into or combined with one or more steps of anyother process or embodiment (e.g., as described in relation to FIGS. 1A,1B, 6, and 8-13).

At step 702, control circuitry 404 (FIG. 4) determines that a user isaccessing content on user equipment. The user equipment may be usertelevision equipment 502, user computer equipment 504, and/or wirelesscommunications device 506 (FIG. 5). Control circuitry 404 may retrievethe content from the media content source 516 and may generate, fordisplay, on display 412. In some embodiments, the content includes atleast one of a linear media asset (e.g., television broadcast sportsevent), an on-demand media asset (e.g., a movie), and social chatter ona social platform associated with the user (e.g., a forum/discussion).Suppose that the user is viewing the horror movie “It: Chapter One,” anon-demand media asset, on his/her set-top box.

At step 704, control circuitry 404 (FIG. 4) retrieves a deviceenablement rule associated with the content. Control circuitry 404 mayrefer to the media guidance data source 418 to retrieve metadataassociated with the content being accessed. The metadata may includedevice enablement rules associated with the content. For example,control circuitry 404 may determine a device enablement rule thatprompts biometric devices to collect heart rate measurements from theuser.

In some embodiments, control circuitry 404 may generate a new deviceenablement rule. For example, suppose that the content provider has notadded a device enablement rule to the metadata of the content. Controlcircuitry 404 may identify popular content, characters, topics, people,places, etc. by referring to social media (e.g., trending on Twitter).Control circuitry 404 may also identify items in the user profile instorage 408 that the user prefers (e.g., content, characters, actors,artists, places, etc.). These preferences may be explicitly stated(e.g., the user indicates that his/her favorite actor is Tom Hanks), orimplicitly (e.g., the user's viewing history indicates that the user hasviewed several movies featuring Tom Hanks). In response, controlcircuitry 404 may generate a device enablement rule with contentcriteria that corresponds to popularity and/or the user profile. Forexample, control circuitry 404 may determine that the user likes tolisten to songs by Adele from the user profile. Control circuitry 404may also determine that a new song sung by Adele is trending on Twitter.In response, control circuitry 404 may generate a device enablement rulethat enables a heart rate monitor to take heart rate measurements whenthe user listens to the new song sung by Adele.

In some embodiments, control circuitry 404 (FIG. 4) may allow the userto create device enablement rules. For example, control circuitry 404may allow the user to access a list of device enablement rules in theuser profile in storage 408 (FIG. 4) and allow the user to manually adddevice enablement rules. The user may enter the device enablement rulethrough I/O Path 402 (FIG. 4). Control circuitry 404 may parse theuser-generated device enablement rule to ensure that the user's deviceenablement rule is valid. For example, if a user creates the deviceenablement rule for measuring heart rate and associates it with apedometer which cannot measure heart rate, control circuitry 404 mayprompt the user on display 412 (FIG. 4) that the user-generated deviceenablement rule is not valid. Similarly, if the user creates a deviceenablement rule that disables a device and takes heart ratemeasurements, control circuitry 404 may determine that the logic ofdisabling a biometric device and taking a measurement is flawed becausethe device is not enabled. Therefore, the user's device enablement ruleis not valid. Control circuitry 404 may also monitor the validity of anydevice enablement rule for which control circuitry 404 determineswhether the content criteria is met.

At step 706, control circuitry 404 (FIG. 4) determines content criteriaspecified by the device enablement rule. A device enablement rule may beprogrammed with “if-else” logic. For example, the device enablement rulemay be structured as “IF [Criteria 1] and/or [Criteria 2] . . . and/or[Criteria N], THEN [RESPONSE A1] and/or [RESPONSE A2] . . . and/or[RESPONSE AN]; ELSE [RESPONSE B1] and/or [RESPONSE B1] . . . and/or[RESPONSE BN].” In this structure, if a combination of the criteria, asestablished by the content provider or user, is met, control circuitry404 will execute the respective response combination from the A set(e.g., A1, A2, etc.). If the combination of the criteria is not met,control circuitry 404 will execute the respective response combinationfrom the B set (e.g., B1, B2, etc.). Suppose that the content providerestablished the device enablement rule states “IF Pennywise the Clownappears in a scene, THEN enable the biometric device and prompt thebiometric device to take a heart rate measurement; ELSE disable thebiometric device.” Suppose that the biometric device is the Fitbit. Thecontent criteria in this device enablement rule is the appearance ofPennywise the Clown, a character in “It: Chapter One,” in a scene of themovie.

At step 708, control circuitry 404 (FIG. 4) retrieves metadataassociated with the content being accessed on the user equipment thatmatches the content criteria. Control circuitry 404 may refer to themetadata associated with the movie, as retrieved from the media guidancedata source 618 (FIG. 6) to determine the characters that appear in themovie at various playback positions (e.g., Pennywise the Clown). Controlcircuitry 404 may also use computer vision to identify objects on thescreen and classify whether the object is Pennywise the Clown or not,using a reference image of Pennywise the Clown (e.g., retrieved from theInternet). Control circuitry 404 may refer to the subtitles of the movieto determine when Pennywise the Clown is mentioned in the movie. Controlcircuitry 404 may also analyze the audio of the movie and utilizenatural language processing to identify the voice of Pennywise theClown, using a reference voice model of Pennywise the Clown (e.g.,retrieved from the Internet). Using any combination of these processes,control circuitry 404 may identify the appearance of Pennywise the Clownand determine that the content criteria is met.

In some embodiments, the device enablement rule may specify the playbackpositions in which Pennywise the Clown appears in the movie. Forexample, the device enablement rule may state “IF playback is atposition 0:12:57 or 0:50:12 or 1:24:23, THEN enable the biometric deviceand prompt the biometric device to take a heart rate measurement; ELSEdisable the biometric device.” The content criteria in this case pointsto specific playback positions in the movie, such as 12 minutes and 57seconds from the start (e.g., 0:12:57). Once playback to the userreaches this point, the content criteria may be satisfied.

At step 710, control circuitry 404 (FIG. 4) compares the retrievedmetadata to a condition specified by the device enablement rule, todetermine whether the content being accessed on the user equipmentsatisfies the device enablement rule. For example, if the user is onplayback position 0:12:57, control circuitry 404 may determine that thecontent criteria of the device enablement rule is satisfied. Incontrast, if the user is on playback position 0:05:11, control circuitry404 may determine that the content criteria of the device enablementrule is not satisfied.

At step 712, control circuitry 404 (FIG. 4) determines whether thecontent being accessed on the user equipment satisfies the deviceenablement rule and furthers the process accordingly. If the contentdoes not satisfy the device enablement rule, the process returns to step702 and control circuitry 404 determines a new playback position of thecontent being accessed by the user. If the content satisfies the deviceenablement rule, control circuitry 404 forwards the process to step 714.

At step 714, control circuitry 404 (FIG. 4) identifies a biometricdevice of the user associated with the device enablement rule. Aspreviously mentioned, the device enablement rule may be retrieved fromthe metadata of the content. The metadata may also include informationabout the biometric devices that the user possesses. For example,control circuitry 404 may determine, from the metadata, that thebiometric device associated with the device enablement rule (e.g., tomeasure heart rate) and possessed by the user include a Samsung Gear, aFitbit band, and a portable heart rate monitor. In some embodiments,control circuitry 404 may determine whether the biometric device isbeing used by the user. For example, control circuitry 404 maycommunicate with the user's Fitbit band to determine whether the user iswearing the band. Biometric devices usually have a built-in sensor todetermine whether the user is in contact with the biometric device. Ifthe user is not near the Fitbit band (e.g., user is viewing the movie inthe living room and the biometric device is in the user's bedroom),control circuitry 404 may determine that the device does not satisfy thedevice enablement rule because it cannot physically measure the user'sheart rate if the content criteria is met.

At step 716, control circuitry 404 (FIG. 4) temporarily activates theidentified biometric device while the content being accessed continuesto satisfy the device enablement rule. Returning to the overarchingexample, control circuitry 404 may identify that the user is wearinghis/her Fitbit band. In addition, control circuitry 404 may determinethat Pennywise the Clown has appeared in a scene being viewed by theuser. In response, control circuitry 404 may determine that the contentcriteria of the device enablement rule have been satisfied, and mayenable the biometric device. The user's Fitbit may remain enabled untilPennywise the Clown exits the scene. Suppose that the user's Fitbit wasinitially in a deactivated state. For example, the data acquisition ofthe Fitbit may have been stopped, or the Fitbit was in sleep mode, alower power mode, or completely powered down. During activation, theFitbit's data acquisition may be started, the Fitbit may be transferredto an active mode, or the Fitbit may be powered on.

At step 718, control circuitry 404 (FIG. 4) measures a biometricresponse of the user to the content being accessed while the biometricdevice is activated. For example, while Pennywise the Clown is in thescene being viewed by the user, control circuitry 404 may ensure thatthe user's Fitbit band is active, and is collecting the user's heartrate. In some embodiments, control circuitry 404 may store thisbiometric response (e.g., heart rate values organized with time stamps)in storage 408 (FIG. 4). Control circuitry 404 may determine that duringthe duration in which the Fitbit was enabled, the average heart rate ofthe user was 111 beats per minute.

At step 720, control circuitry 404 (FIG. 4) generates a contentrecommendation based on the measured biometric response. Suppose that ina certain scene, Pennywise the Clown appears. Metadata associated withthe device enablement rule may indicate that the expected biometricresponse should be in a heart rate range of 90-100 beats per minute.Control circuitry 404 may refer to a biometrics database in storage 408(FIG. 4) that includes information about different levels of biometricresponses. As previously mentioned, the biometrics database may have aheart rate table classifying various heart rate levels. For example,80-100 beats per minute may be classified as an accelerated heart rateand 100-120 may be classified as very accelerated, in the heart ratetable. Based on the heart rate table, control circuitry 404 maytherefore determine that the user's heart rate is in the “veryaccelerated” heart rate class and is not in the expected “accelerated”class, as indicated in the expected biometric response. In someembodiments, if the user's biometric response increases beyond athreshold (e.g., 140 beats per minute), control circuitry 404 may stopplayback of the content being accessed by the user as a safety measure.This is further discussed in the description of FIG. 13. In someembodiments, control circuitry 404 may search for content that can slowdown the user's heart rate. Control circuitry 404 may determine that thegenre of the user's accessed content “It: Chapter One” is horror.Accordingly, control circuitry 404 may determine that the user should berecommended content from the horror genre that is considered less scary.Control circuitry 404 may refer to the Internet to search for horrormovies, or may refer to media guidance data source 618 (FIG. 6) tosearch for content with device enablement rules associated with a“slightly-accelerated heart rate” expected biometric response. Oncecontrol circuitry 404 has identified a list of content associated with a“slightly accelerated heart rate,” control circuitry 404 may search forcontent in the list of content that is associated with the horror genrein their respective metadata. Suppose that control circuitry 404identifies the movie “The Conjuring” which features scenes with deviceenablement rules associated with maximum “slightly accelerated” heartrates. Control circuitry 404 may generate for display, therecommendation, after the viewer has stopped watching “It: Chapter One”on display 412 (FIG. 4), recommending “The Conjuring.” In someembodiments, control circuitry 404 may generate for display, therecommendation, on a second display screen (e.g., the user'ssmartphone).

It is contemplated that the steps or descriptions of FIG. 7 may be usedwith any other embodiment of this disclosure. In addition, the steps anddescriptions described in relation to FIG. 7 may be done in alternativeorders or in parallel to further the purposes of this disclosure. Forexample, each of these steps may be performed in any order or inparallel or substantially simultaneously to reduce lag or increase thespeed of the system or method. Any of these steps may also be skipped oromitted from the process. Furthermore, it should be noted that any ofthe devices or equipment discussed in relation to FIGS. 4-5 could beused to perform one or more of the steps in FIG. 7.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart of a detailed illustrative process for determiningwhether aportion of the content corresponding to a progress position ofthe content is popular, in accordance with some embodiments of thedisclosure. It should be noted that process 800 or any step thereofcould be performed on, or provided by, any of the devices shown in FIGS.4-5. For example, process 800 may be executed by control circuitry 404(FIG. 4) as instructed by a media guidance application implemented on auser device (e.g., user equipment devices 502, 504, and/or 506 (FIG. 5))in order to determine whether aportion of the content corresponding to aprogress position of the content is popular. In addition, one or moresteps of process 800 may be incorporated into or combined with one ormore steps of any other process or embodiment (e.g., as described inrelation to FIGS. 1A, 1B, 6-7, and 9-13).

At step 802, control circuitry 404 (FIG. 4) searches a social networkbased on an identifier of the content to identify a plurality ofcommunications associated with the content. The identifier of thecontent may be any representation of the content such as the content'sname (e.g., “It: Chapter Name”), common name (e.g., “It”), genre (e.g.,horror), creator (e.g., artist, production house, director, etc.),characters, cast, artwork, and/or sound. Accordingly, control circuitry404 may search for “Pennywise the Clown” on a social network such asFacebook, in order to identify a plurality of communications associatedwith “Pennywise the Clown.” The plurality of communications may includeposts, comments, messages, acknowledgments (e.g., likes, reactions,etc.), videos, photos, audio clips, etc.

At step 804, control circuitry 404 (FIG. 4) identifies a number of thecommunications that were received by the social network within athreshold period of time of a progress position of the content. Thethreshold period of time may be a window of time before and/or after theprogress position of the content. The progress position represents adiscrete point in the content and may include, but is not limited to,the playback position of a video/audio or a slide number in a slideshowof images and text. Suppose that the progress point is 12 min 50 secondsinto the movie “It: Chapter One” and the threshold period of time is tenminutes. Control circuitry 404 may thus only consider communicationsthat were received by the social network, Facebook, between 7 min 50seconds and 17 min 50 seconds. In some cases, control circuitry 404 mayconsider a shifted window of time. For example, control circuitry 404may consider communications between 4 min 50 second and 14 min 50seconds. In this case, the ten-minute threshold period of time is notcentered at the progress point. Thus, any communications referring toscenes within the threshold period of time of the progress point may beconsidered. For example, while accessing “It: Chapter One,” a first user(e.g., the user's friend) may post a comment on a social network.Control circuitry 404 on the friend's device may determine that thefriend is accessing “It: Chapter One” and add the friend's progresspoint as metadata to the friend's communication. When control circuitry404 on the user's device identifies communications, control circuitry404 may retrieve the metadata of the communication to determine whetherthe communication's progress point is within the threshold period oftime. In the case where the user is accessing content being broadcasted,control circuitry 404 may determine the transmission time of the contentand consider the progress point with respect to the transmission time.For example, if “It: Chapter One” is broadcasted on HBO on Nov. 1, 2017at 8:00 pm, and the progress point is 12 min 50 seconds into the movie,control circuitry 404 may consider commercial times and content versionin order to determine that the progress point time is 8:15 pm. Thus, thethreshold period of time may be any ten-minute window around 8:15 pm(e.g., 8:12 pm and 8:22 pm). As a result, control circuitry 404 mayconsider communications that were received by a social network duringthat time.

At step 806, control circuitry 404 (FIG. 4) determines whether thenumber of the communications exceeds a threshold value. For example,control circuitry 404 may count the number of communications that werereceived within a threshold period of time by various social networks(e.g., Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Reddit, etc.) and are associatedwith the identifier of the content. Suppose that control circuitry 404identifies 10,000 communications. In some embodiments, the user may alsolimit the communications to those posted by the user's friends. In thiscase, control circuitry 404 may identify 50 communications. Controlcircuitry 404 may retrieve a threshold value from the user profile instorage 408. The threshold value (e.g., 20) represents a minimum amountof communications needed to determine whether the portion of the contentis popular.

At step 808, control circuitry 404 (FIG. 4) decides whether the numberof the communications exceed a threshold value. If the number ofcommunications is less than the threshold value, the process returns tostep 802. At this point, the user's progress point may have changed.Therefore, control circuitry 404 may identify new communications on asocial network. If the number of communications is greater than thethreshold value, the process continues to step 810.

At step 810, control circuitry 404 (FIG. 4) detects that a portion ofthe content corresponding to the progress position of the content ispopular. For example, the threshold value may be 20 and the number ofcommunications may be 50. Accordingly, control circuitry 404 maydetermine that the portion within the threshold period of time ispopular.

At step 812, control circuitry 404 (FIG. 4) stores a start time and anend time of the portion of the content. The start time may be the firsttime of the window of time formed by the threshold period of time aroundthe progress point. The end time may the last time of the window of timeformed by the threshold period of time around the progress point. Forexample, if the progress point is 12 min 50 seconds, and the thresholdperiod of time is ten minutes, the start time may be 7 min 50 secondsand the end time may be 17 min 50 seconds. In terms of transmission time(e.g., content began transmission at 8:00 pm on HBO), the start time maybe 8:08 pm and the end time may be 8:18 pm.

At step 814, control circuitry 404 (FIG. 4) detects that a currentprogression point of the content being accessed corresponds to the starttime. Consider a scenario in which the progress point is 12 minutes 50seconds. The threshold window of time may ten minutes. Furthermore, theten-minute window may start at 12 minutes 50 seconds (e.g., start time)and end at 22 minutes 50 seconds (e.g., end time). Control circuitry 404may determine that the current progression point of the content (e.g.,12 minutes 55 seconds) corresponds to the start time and is within thethreshold period of time. Control circuitry 404 may determine that thecurrent progression time corresponds to the start time if the currentprogression time is within second threshold period of time from thestart time. The second threshold period of time is less than thethreshold period of time discussed previously (e.g., within 10 secondsfrom the start time).

At step 816, control circuitry 404 (FIG. 4) temporarily activates thebiometric device while the current progression point is between thestart time and the end time. For example, control circuitry 404 maycommunicate with the user's Fitbit band to enable the Fitbit's heartrate measuring feature at the start time. Once the current progressionpoint has reached the end time, control circuitry 404 may communicatewith the user's Fitbit band to disable the Fitbit's heart rate measuringfeature.

It is contemplated that the steps or descriptions of FIG. 8 may be usedwith any other embodiment of this disclosure. In addition, the steps anddescriptions described in relation to FIG. 8 may be done in alternativeorders or in parallel to further the purposes of this disclosure. Forexample, each of these steps may be performed in any order or inparallel or substantially simultaneously to reduce lag or increase thespeed of the system or method. Any of these steps may also be skipped oromitted from the process. Furthermore, it should be noted that any ofthe devices or equipment discussed in relation to FIGS. 4-5 could beused to perform one or more of the steps in FIG. 8.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart of a detailed illustrative process for determiningwhether aportion of the content corresponding to a progress position ofthe content is popular, in accordance with some embodiments of thedisclosure. It should be noted that process 900 or any step thereofcould be performed on, or provided by, any of the devices shown in FIGS.4-5. For example, process 900 may be executed by control circuitry 404(FIG. 4) as instructed by a media guidance application implemented on auser device (e.g., user equipment devices 502, 504, and/or 506 (FIG. 5))in order to determine whether aportion of the content corresponding to aprogress position of the content is popular. In addition, one or moresteps of process 900 may be incorporated into or combined with one ormore steps of any other process or embodiment (e.g., as described inrelation to FIGS. 1A, 1B, 6-8, and 10-13).

At step 902, control circuitry 404 (FIG. 4) retrieves from the deviceenablement rule, a set of biometric devices specified in the deviceenablement rule. For example, control circuitry 404 may refer to themedia guidance data source 518 (FIG. 5) to retrieve metadata associatedwith the device enablement rule. The metadata may include a set ofbiometric devices that the device enablement rule specifies. Forexample, the set of biometric devices associated with the deviceenablement rule that measures heart rate may include Fitbit bands,Samsung Gear, and a portable heart rate monitor.

At step 904, control circuitry 404 (FIG. 4) retrieves a list ofbiometric devices associated with the user. As previously mentioned,control circuitry 404 may refer to the user profile in storage 408 (FIG.4) to identify biometric devices that the user has access to, or isassociated with the user. For example, control circuitry 404 maydetermine that the user is associated with a Fitbit band, a SamsungGear, and a pedometer.

At step 906, control circuitry 404 (FIG. 4) compares the list ofbiometric devices associated with the user with the set of biometricdevices specified in the device enablement rule. For example, controlcircuitry 404 may determine that the device enablement rule isassociated with the Fitbit band and the Samsung Gear, two devices thatthe user is associated with. However, control circuitry 404 may alsodetermine that the user is not associated with a portable heart ratemonitor, and the device enablement rule is not compatible with thepedometer.

At step 908, control circuitry 404 (FIG. 4) selects as the identifiedbiometric device, one or more of the biometric devices in the list thatmatches one or more of the biometric devices in the set of biometricdevices. For example, control circuitry 404 may select the Fitbit bandand the Samsung Gear because they appear in both the list and the set ofbiometric devices.

It is contemplated that the steps or descriptions of FIG. 9 may be usedwith any other embodiment of this disclosure. In addition, the steps anddescriptions described in relation to FIG. 9 may be done in alternativeorders or in parallel to further the purposes of this disclosure. Forexample, each of these steps may be performed in any order or inparallel or substantially simultaneously to reduce lag or increase thespeed of the system or method. Any of these steps may also be skipped oromitted from the process. Furthermore, it should be noted that any ofthe devices or equipment discussed in relation to FIGS. 4-5 could beused to perform one or more of the steps in FIG. 9.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart of a detailed illustrative process fordetermining a type of content being accessed by the user equipment, inaccordance with some embodiments of the disclosure. It should be notedthat process 1000 or any step thereof could be performed on, or providedby, any of the devices shown in FIGS. 4-5. For example, process 1000 maybe executed by control circuitry 404 (FIG. 4) as instructed by a mediaguidance application implemented on a user device (e.g., user equipmentdevices 502, 504, and/or 506 (FIG. 5)) in order to determine a type ofcontent being accessed by the user equipment. In addition, one or moresteps of process 1000 may be incorporated into or combined with one ormore steps of any other process or embodiment (e.g., as described inrelation to FIGS. 1A, 1B, 6-9, and 11-13).

At step 1002, control circuitry 404 (FIG. 4) determines a type ofcontent being accessed by the user equipment. The type of content may bethe medium in which the content is presented. For example, the contentmay be a video, an audio clip, an e-book, an image, a game, etc. Controlcircuitry 404 may refer to the metadata of the content, retrieve fromthe media guidance data source 518 (FIG. 5), to determine the type ofcontent.

At step 1004, control circuitry 404 (FIG. 4) selects as the deviceenablement rule, a given device enablement rule of a plurality of deviceenablement rules that corresponds to the type of content being accessed.For example, the user may be able to access the content “It: ChapterOne” in various types. These types include a video of the movie, anaudiobook, an e-book of the original story written by Stephen King, or acomic featuring various graphics. Depending on the type of content, thedevice enablement rules may vary. For example, for a video, the deviceenablement rule may activate a biometric device in response todetermining that Pennywise the Clown has appeared in a scene. For theaudiobook, a device enablement rule may activate whenever a voice actorportraying Pennywise the Clown speaks. Control circuitry 404 may thusselect a device enablement rule from a plurality of device enablementrules, based on the type of content the user is accessing.

It is contemplated that the steps or descriptions of FIG. 10 may be usedwith any other embodiment of this disclosure. In addition, the steps anddescriptions described in relation to FIG. 10 may be done in alternativeorders or in parallel to further the purposes of this disclosure. Forexample, each of these steps may be performed in any order or inparallel or substantially simultaneously to reduce lag or increase thespeed of the system or method. Any of these steps may also be skipped oromitted from the process. Furthermore, it should be noted that any ofthe devices or equipment discussed in relation to FIGS. 4-5 could beused to perform one or more of the steps in FIG. 10.

FIG. 11 is a flowchart of a detailed illustrative process fordeactivating the identified biometric device, in accordance with someembodiments of the disclosure. It should be noted that process 1100 orany step thereof could be performed on, or provided by, any of thedevices shown in FIGS. 4-5. For example, process 1100 may be executed bycontrol circuitry 404 (FIG. 4) as instructed by a media guidanceapplication implemented on a user device (e.g., user equipment devices502, 504, and/or 506 (FIG. 5)) in order to deactivate the identifiedbiometric device. In addition, one or more steps of process 1100 may beincorporated into or combined with one or more steps of any otherprocess or embodiment (e.g., as described in relation to FIGS. 1A, 1B,6-10, and 12-13).

At step 1102, control circuitry 404 (FIG. 4) determines that the contentbeing accessed satisfies the device enablement rule, occurs at a firstprogression point in the content. If a user is accessing “It: ChapterOne” in the form of an audiobook, control circuitry 404 may retrieve adevice enablement rule that states “IF the voice actor of Pennywise theClown speaks, THEN enable the biometric device and measure the user'sheart rate; ELSE disable the biometric device.” Control circuitry 404may use voice recognition method (e.g., natural language processing) toidentify that the voice actor of Pennywise the Clown begins talking 12minutes and 50 seconds from the start of the content. Control circuitry404 may also refer to metadata associated with the audiobook thatindicates the times at which various voice actors speak. If the user'scurrent playback position is the first progression point, controlcircuitry 404 may check whether the device enablement rule is satisfied.Suppose that the user's first progression point is 12 minutes 50seconds. Control circuitry 404 may determine that the device enablementrule is satisfied.

At step 1104, control circuitry 404 (FIG. 4) monitors additionalmetadata of the content accessed by the user equipment corresponding toa second progression point later than the first progression point. Forexample, control circuitry 404 may determine that the use has reached asecond progression point (e.g., 13 minutes 35 seconds). At that point,control circuitry 404 may monitor the metadata associated with theaudiobook to determine the voice actors that are speaking during thesecond progression point. Suppose that the voice actor for Pennywise theClown stops speaking at the second progression point.

At step 1106, control circuitry 404 (FIG. 4) compares the additionalmetadata to the condition specified by the device enablement rule todetermine whether the content being accessed on the user equipment atthe second progression point satisfies the device enablement rule. Ifthe device enablement rule measures heart rate when the voice actor ofPennywise the Clown speaks, control circuitry 404 may determine that thevoice actor stops speaking at the second progression point. As a result,the device enablement rule is not satisfied.

At step 1108, control circuitry 404 (FIG. 4) decides whether the contentbeing accessed on the user equipment at the second progression pointsatisfies the device enablement rule. If the device enablement rule isnot satisfied, the process continues to step 1110. Otherwise, theprocess continues to step 1112.

At step 1110, control circuitry 404 (FIG. 4) deactivates the identifiedbiometric device. For example, if the Fitbit band of the user beginstaking heart rate measurements from the first progression point, controlcircuitry 404 may communicate with the Fitbit band over communicationnetwork 514 (FIG. 5) in order to deactivate the Fitbit band. As aresult, the Fitbit band will stop taking heart rate measurements.

At step 1112, in response to determining that the device enablement ruleis satisfied, control circuitry 404 (FIG. 4) monitors additionalmetadata of the content accessed by the user equipment corresponding toa third progression point later than the second progression point. Forexample, control circuitry 404 may wait an additional period of timeuntil the user reaches the third progression point (e.g., 15 minutes 2seconds). Once the user has reached the third progression point, controlcircuitry 404 may access metadata associated with the third progressionpoint, such as the name(s) of the voice actors speaking at the thirdprogression point. This serves the purpose of determining a point atwhich the device enablement rule is no longer satisfied.

It is contemplated that the steps or descriptions of FIG. 11 may be usedwith any other embodiment of this disclosure. In addition, the steps anddescriptions described in relation to FIG. 11 may be done in alternativeorders or in parallel to further the purposes of this disclosure. Forexample, each of these steps may be performed in any order or inparallel or substantially simultaneously to reduce lag or increase thespeed of the system or method. Any of these steps may also be skipped oromitted from the process. Furthermore, it should be noted that any ofthe devices or equipment discussed in relation to FIGS. 4-5 could beused to perform one or more of the steps in FIG. 11.

FIG. 12 is a flowchart of a detailed illustrative process for selectinga media asset, as the content recommendation, that corresponds to agroup profile associated with a group of users, in accordance with someembodiments of the disclosure. It should be noted that process 1200 orany step thereof could be performed on, or provided by, any of thedevices shown in FIGS. 4-5. For example, process 1200 may be executed bycontrol circuitry 404 (FIG. 4) as instructed by a media guidanceapplication implemented on a user device (e.g., user equipment devices502, 504, and/or 506 (FIG. 5)) in order to select a media asset, as thecontent recommendation, that corresponds to a group profile associatedwith a group of users. In addition, one or more steps of process 1200may be incorporated into or combined with one or more steps of any otherprocess or embodiment (e.g., as described in relation to FIGS. 1A, 1B,6-11, and 13).

At step 1202, control circuitry 404 (FIG. 4) retrieves an averagebiometric response of a plurality of users to the content being accessedat the first progression point. For example, control circuitry 404 mayrefer to a remote server that stores biometric responses of varioususers through communication network 514 (FIG. 5). The remote server mayinclude a biometrics database that is organized based on variousmeasurements and biometric devices. For example, the biometrics databasemay include heart rate measurements of various users. The heart ratemeasurements may be associated with content, progression points, andother details (e.g., biometrics) about users such as age and weight.Control circuitry 404 may retrieve the heart rate measurements for aplurality of users listed in the biometrics database that accessed “It:Chapter One” in the same content type as the user. More specifically,control circuitry 404 may determine whether the biometric response isassociated with the first progression point. If so, control circuitry404 may determine the average biometric response. For example, ifcontrol circuitry 404 retrieves 10,000 heart rate measurementsassociated with “It: Chapter One” (e.g., audiobook) at the firstprogression point (e.g., 12 minutes 50 seconds), control circuitry 404may determine that the average heart rate is 82 beats per minute.

At step 1204, control circuitry 404 (FIG. 4) compares the biometricresponse of the user to the average biometric response. Suppose that thebiometric response of the user at the first progression point was 80beats per minute. Control circuitry 404 may rely on a response thresholdto compare the user's biometrics response with the average biometricsresponse. The response threshold represents a range within which thebiometric response may correspond. For example, the response thresholdfor heart rate measurements may be 5 beats per minute. Therefore, if thebiometric response of the user is plus or minus 5 beats per minutewithin range of the average biometric response (e.g., between 77 beatsper minute and 87 beats per minute), control circuitry 404 may determinethat the biometric response corresponds to the average biometricresponse. In some cases, the response threshold is determined by apercentage difference. For example, the response threshold may be 2%.Therefore, control circuitry 404 may determine that the range of theaverage heart rate is 2% plus or minus the heart rate (e.g., 2% of 82 is1.64 and thus the range is between 82-1.64 beats per minute and 82+1.64beats per minute).

At step 1206, control circuitry 404 (FIG. 4) decides whether thebiometric response of the user corresponds to the average biometricresponse. Suppose that control circuitry 404 relies on the range methodfor the response threshold. Based on the response threshold of 5 beatsper minute, control circuitry 404 may determine that the user'sbiometric response, 80 beats per minute, corresponds to the averagebiometric response. The process progresses to step 1208. However, ifcontrol circuitry 404 determines that the user's biometric response was70 beats per minute (e.g., outside of the response threshold), theprocess may shift to step 1104 of FIG. 11. In this case, controlcircuitry 404 may continue to look for metadata associated with thecontent across various progression points.

At step 1208, control circuitry 404 (FIG. 4) identifies a group of userswho experienced an average biometric response to the content beingaccessed at the first progression point that corresponds to thebiometric response of the user. For example, control circuitry 404 maydetermine that of the plurality of 10,000 users identified in step 1202,2,000 users experienced a biometric response that also corresponds tothe user's biometric response. More specifically, 2,000 users have abiometric response that is within the response threshold of the user. Ifthe user's biometric response is 80 beats per minute and the responsethreshold is 2 beats per minute, control circuitry 404 may identifyusers with an average biometric response between 78 and 82 beats perminute.

At step 1210, control circuitry 404 (FIG. 4) selects as the contentrecommendation, a media asset that corresponds to a group profileassociated with the group of users. For example, control circuitry 404may determine that out of the 10,000 users identified in step 1202,2,000 users have biometric responses corresponding to the user'sbiometric response. Control circuitry 404 may classify the 2,000 usersunder a group profile. For example, control circuitry 404 may access theuser profiles of the respective users to determine commonalities ofinterest (e.g., favorite movies, most accessed media asset, etc.). Basedon this information, control circuitry 404 may recommend a media assetthat a majority of the users have accessed or favorited.

It is contemplated that the steps or descriptions of FIG. 12 may be usedwith any other embodiment of this disclosure. In addition, the steps anddescriptions described in relation to FIG. 12 may be done in alternativeorders or in parallel to further the purposes of this disclosure. Forexample, each of these steps may be performed in any order or inparallel or substantially simultaneously to reduce lag or increase thespeed of the system or method. Any of these steps may also be skipped oromitted from the process. Furthermore, it should be noted that any ofthe devices or equipment discussed in relation to FIGS. 4-5 could beused to perform one or more of the steps in FIG. 12.

FIG. 13 is a flowchart of a detailed illustrative process foridentifying a disorder related to a lack of a typical biometric responseto content that matches the content criteria, that corresponds to agroup profile associated with a group of users, in accordance with someembodiments of the disclosure. It should be noted that process 1300 orany step thereof could be performed on, or provided by, any of thedevices shown in FIGS. 4-5. For example, process 1300 may be executed bycontrol circuitry 404 (FIG. 4) as instructed by a media guidanceapplication implemented on a user device (e.g., user equipment devices502, 504, and/or 506 (FIG. 5)) in order to identify a disorder relatedto a lack of a typical biometric response to content that matches thecontent criteria. In addition, one or more steps of process 1300 may beincorporated into or combined with one or more steps of any otherprocess or embodiment (e.g., as described in relation to FIGS. 1A, 1Band 6-12).

At step 1302, control circuitry 404 (FIG. 4) decides whether thebiometric response of the user corresponds to the average biometricresponse. Suppose that control circuitry 404 relies on the percentagemethod for the response threshold. Based on the response threshold of 4%beats per minute, control circuitry 404 may determine that the user'sbiometric response, 80 beats per minute, corresponds to the averagebiometric response. The process progresses to step 1208 in FIG. 12.However, if control circuitry 404 determines that the user's biometricresponse was 140 beats per minute (e.g., outside of the responsethreshold), the process shifts to step 1304.

At step 1304, control circuitry 404 (FIG. 4) identifies a disorderrelated to a lack of a typical biometric response to content thatmatches the content criteria, wherein the media asset relates to thedisorder. Suppose that the heart rate of the user, in response toaccessing content at the first progression point, rises to 140 beats perminute. In comparison to the average heart rate of the users identifiedin 1302 (e.g., 82 beats per minute), control circuitry 404 may determinethat the user's heart rate is abnormally high. Furthermore, controlcircuitry 404 may refer to the biometrics database to determine whetherthe user's heart rate when accessing other content is consistently abovethe expected biometric response. For example, control circuitry 404 maydetermine that the user has accessed ten media assets in the past. Foreach media asset, control circuitry 404 may determine that a majority ofthe user's biometric responses exceed the expected biometric response bya threshold amount. The threshold amount may be a percentage or numberindicating a minimum difference from the expected biometric response,for which the user's biometric response is considered abnormal. If thethreshold percentage is 40%, the expected biometric response is 100beats per minute and the user's biometric response is 150 beats perminute, control circuitry 404 may determine that the response'sdifference is 50% and therefore the measurement is abnormal. Inresponse, control circuitry 404 may identify a heart disorder associatedwith very high heart rates. Control circuitry 404 may refer to thebiometrics database to identify disorders associated with the user'sabnormal biometric responses. As mentioned previously, the biometricsdatabase may additionally include names of disorders, definitions, andassociated values of biometric responses.

At step 1306, control circuitry 404 (FIG. 4) alert another userassociated with the user about the disorder. Control circuitry 404 mayrefer to the user profile in storage 408 (FIG. 4) to identify emergencycontacts selected by the user. For example, the user may indicatehis/her parents as emergency contacts. In response to determining anabnormal biometric response, control circuitry 404 may send a message tothe parents of the user indicating a potential risk for the identifieddisorder. The message may include, but is not limited to, a textmessage, an email, a social media message, or a computer voice-generatedphone call.

At step 1308, control circuitry 404 (FIG. 4) monitors treatment progressof the disorder of the user by detecting a different biometric responseof the user to additional content that matches the criteria at asubsequent time. For example, control circuitry 404 may increase thefrequency of heart rate measurements by creating device enablement rulesthat measure heart rate. Control circuitry 404 may recommend contentsimilar to the content the user accessed to compare the difference inbiometric responses. For example, control circuitry 404 may identifythat “The Conjuring” is a horror movie with similar average biometricresponses as “It: Chapter One,” based on the biometrics database. If theuser accesses “The Conjuring,” control circuitry 404 may compare thebiometric response of user to scenes in “The Conjuring” to scenes in“It: Chapter One.” If the user's heart rate is less in the former,control circuitry 404 may determine that the user's disorder haslessened in severity. If the user's heart rate is in the normal rangeagain over several readings, control circuitry 404 may determine thatthe user's heart rate is no longer abnormal.

It is contemplated that the steps or descriptions of FIG. 13 may be usedwith any other embodiment of this disclosure. In addition, the steps anddescriptions described in relation to FIG. 13 may be done in alternativeorders or in parallel to further the purposes of this disclosure. Forexample, each of these steps may be performed in any order or inparallel or substantially simultaneously to reduce lag or increase thespeed of the system or method. Any of these steps may also be skipped oromitted from the process. Furthermore, it should be noted that any ofthe devices or equipment discussed in relation to FIGS. 4-5 could beused to perform one or more of the steps in FIG. 13.

The processes discussed above are intended to be illustrative and notlimiting. One skilled in the art would appreciate that the steps of theprocesses discussed herein may be omitted, modified, combined, and/orrearranged, and any additional steps may be performed without departingfrom the scope of the invention. More generally, the above disclosure ismeant to be exemplary and not limiting. Only the claims that follow aremeant to set bounds as to what the present invention includes.Furthermore, it should be noted that the features and limitationsdescribed in any one embodiment may be applied to any other embodimentherein, and flowcharts or examples relating to one embodiment may becombined with any other embodiment in a suitable manner, done indifferent orders, or done in parallel. In addition, the systems andmethods described herein may be performed in real time. It should alsobe noted that the systems and/or methods described above may be appliedto, or used in accordance with, other systems and/or methods.

1.-51. (canceled)
 52. A method for recommending content based onbiometric information, the method comprising: identifying content beingconsumed by a user on user equipment; selecting, from a plurality ofdevice enablement rules, a device enablement rule associated with thecontent, wherein the device enablement rule specifies a biometric deviceand comprises content criteria for acquiring the biometric informationfrom the biometric device; determining whether the content satisfies thecontent criteria of the device enablement rule; in response todetermining that the content satisfies the content criteria: identifyinga biometric device associated with the user matching the biometricdevice specified in the device enablement rule; acquiring, from thebiometric device, the biometric information of the user at a firstprogression point of the content; identifying a group of users havingrespective biometric responses to the content being accessed at thefirst progression point, wherein each respective biometric response iswithin a predetermined threshold of the biometric information of theuser; selecting as a content recommendation a media asset indicated in amajority of respective user profiles of the identified group of users;and generating, for display on the user equipment, the selected contentrecommendation.
 53. The method of claim 52, further comprising, prior toidentifying the group of users having respective biometric responses tothe content being accessed at the first progression point within thepredetermined threshold of the biometric information of the user:computing an average biometric response of a plurality of users of whichthe group of users is a subset; and in response to determining that thebiometric information of the user at the first progression pointcorresponds to the average biometric response of the plurality of users,performing the identifying of the group of users.
 54. The method ofclaim 53, wherein determining whether the biometric information of theuser corresponds to the average biometric response of the plurality ofusers comprises determining whether the biometric information of theuser is within a predetermined range of the average biometric response.55. The method of claim 52, further comprising, prior to identifying thegroup of users having respective biometric responses to the contentbeing accessed at the first progression point within the predeterminedthreshold of the biometric information of the user: computing an averagebiometric response of a plurality of users of which the group of usersis a subset; and in response to determining that the biometric responseof the user does not correspond to the average biometric response,identifying a disorder related to a lack of a typical biometric responseto content that matches the content criteria, wherein the media assetrelates to the disorder; and alerting another user associated with theuser about the disorder.
 56. The method of claim 55, further comprisingmonitoring treatment progress of the disorder of the user by detecting adifferent biometric response of the user to additional content thatmatches the criteria at a subsequent time.
 57. The method of claim 52,wherein a first device enablement rule of the plurality of deviceenablement rules corresponds to content of a first genre and a seconddevice enablement rule of the plurality of device enablement rulescorresponds to content of a second genre.
 58. The method of claim 52,wherein determining whether the content satisfies the content criteriaof the device enablement rule comprises: searching a social networkbased on an identifier of the content to identify a plurality ofcommunications associated with the content; identifying a number of thecommunications that were received by the social network within athreshold period of time of a progression point of the content;determining whether the number of the communications exceeds a minimumnumber of communications indicative of popularity; and in response todetermining the number of the communications exceeds the minimum numberof communications, determining that a portion of the contentcorresponding to the progression point of the content satisfies thecontent criteria of the device enablement rule.
 59. The method of claim58, wherein acquiring, from the biometric device, the biometricinformation of the user comprises: storing a start time and an end timeof the portion of the content; and acquiring the biometric informationof the user while the progression point is between the start time andthe end time.
 60. The method of claim 52, wherein identifying thebiometric device comprises: retrieving from the device enablement rule aset of biometric devices specified in the device enablement rule;retrieving a list of biometric devices associated with the user;comparing the list of biometric devices associated with the user withthe set of biometric devices specified in the device enablement rule;and selecting as the identified biometric device one or more of thebiometric devices in the list that matches one or more of the biometricdevices in the set of biometric devices.
 61. The method of claim 52,further comprising: monitoring additional metadata of the contentcorresponding to a second progression point later than the firstprogression point; comparing the additional metadata to the contentcriteria of the device enablement rule; determining, based on thecomparing, whether the content at the second progression point satisfiesthe content criteria of the device enablement rule; and in response todetermining that the content at the second progression point does notsatisfy the content criteria of the device enablement rule, ceasingacquisition of the biometric information of the user at the secondprogression point.
 62. A system for recommending content based onbiometric information, the system comprising: memory storing a pluralityof device enablement rules; and control circuitry configured to:identify content being consumed by a user on user equipment; select,from the plurality of device enablement rules, a device enablement ruleassociated with the content, wherein the device enablement rulespecifies a biometric device and comprises content criteria foracquiring the biometric information from the biometric device; determinewhether the content satisfies the content criteria of the deviceenablement rule; in response to determining that the content satisfiesthe content criteria: identify a biometric device associated with theuser matching the biometric device specified in the device enablementrule; acquire, from the biometric device, the biometric information ofthe user at a first progression point of the content; identify a groupof users having respective biometric responses to the content beingaccessed at the first progression point, wherein each respectivebiometric response is within a predetermined threshold of the biometricinformation of the user; select as a content recommendation a mediaasset indicated in a majority of respective user profiles of theidentified group of users; and generate, for display on the userequipment, the selected content recommendation.
 63. The system of claim62, wherein the control circuitry is further configured to, prior toidentifying the group of users having respective biometric responses tothe content being accessed at the first progression point within thepredetermined threshold of the biometric information of the user:compute an average biometric response of a plurality of users of whichthe group of users is a subset; and in response to determining that thebiometric information of the user at the first progression pointcorresponds to the average biometric response of the plurality of users,perform the identifying of the group of users.
 64. The system of claim63, wherein determining whether the biometric information of the usercorresponds to the average biometric response of the plurality of userscomprises determining whether the biometric information of the user iswithin a predetermined range of the average biometric response.
 65. Thesystem of claim 62, wherein the control circuitry is further configuredto, prior to identifying the group of users having respective biometricresponses to the content being accessed at the first progression pointwithin the predetermined threshold of the biometric information of theuser: compute an average biometric response of a plurality of users ofwhich the group of users is a subset; and in response to determiningthat the biometric response of the user does not correspond to theaverage biometric response, identify a disorder related to a lack of atypical biometric response to content that matches the content criteria,wherein the media asset relates to the disorder; and alert another userassociated with the user about the disorder.
 66. The system of claim 65,wherein the control circuitry is further configured to monitor treatmentprogress of the disorder of the user by detecting a different biometricresponse of the user to additional content that matches the criteria ata subsequent time.
 67. The system of claim 62, wherein a first deviceenablement rule of the plurality of device enablement rules correspondsto content of a first genre and a second device enablement rule of theplurality of device enablement rules corresponds to content of a secondgenre.
 68. The system of claim 62, wherein the control circuitry isconfigured to determine whether the content satisfies the contentcriteria of the device enablement rule by: searching a social networkbased on an identifier of the content to identify a plurality ofcommunications associated with the content; identifying a number of thecommunications that were received by the social network within athreshold period of time of a progression point of the content;determining whether the number of the communications exceeds a minimumnumber of communications indicative of popularity; and in response todetermining the number of the communications exceeds the minimum numberof communications, determining that a portion of the contentcorresponding to the progression point of the content satisfies thecontent criteria of the device enablement rule.
 69. The system of claim68, wherein the control circuitry is configured to acquire, from thebiometric device, the biometric information of the user by: storing astart time and an end time of the portion of the content; and acquiringthe biometric information of the user while the progression point isbetween the start time and the end time.
 70. The system of claim 62,wherein the control circuitry is configured to identify the biometricdevice by: retrieving from the device enablement rule a set of biometricdevices specified in the device enablement rule; retrieving a list ofbiometric devices associated with the user; comparing the list ofbiometric devices associated with the user with the set of biometricdevices specified in the device enablement rule; and selecting as theidentified biometric device one or more of the biometric devices in thelist that matches one or more of the biometric devices in the set ofbiometric devices.
 71. The system of claim 62, wherein the controlcircuitry is further configured to: monitor additional metadata of thecontent corresponding to a second progression point later than the firstprogression point; compare the additional metadata to the contentcriteria of the device enablement rule; determine, based on thecomparing, whether the content at the second progression point satisfiesthe content criteria of the device enablement rule; and in response todetermining that the content at the second progression point does notsatisfy the content criteria of the device enablement rule, ceaseacquisition of the biometric information of the user at the secondprogression point.